Launch Date
by ArtyArtillery
Summary: In which Ahsoka mistakes Riyo for an office secretary, Riyo is sometimes too gay to function, and R7-A7 is determined to be a trollish kark. Barriss also shows up late, with caf. Somehow, the relationship between Ahsoka and Riyo helps save the entire galaxy. COMPLETE!
1. Ambrostine

Note Bene: Hi! Hello. Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening. Thanks for checking out this story. I worked very hard on it, and I hope you enjoy it. If you like it, please leave feedback (either kudos and comments, or reviews, depending on which website you're on). Let me know what you liked, and what you didn't like. Also let me know of any typos you find. There was no beta, or proofreader, for this story; it was just me working on it until 3 in the morning for many mornings, and I might have missed something while editing it.

Anything else I missed? OH! Disclaimer (it's tradition after all). I don't make any money off this story. Please just let me write these space lesbians/bisexuals in peace.

I think that's it. Hold your device close and get comfy, gentle readers, so that I can tell you a story.

Edit: This story is currently being translated into Russian here: /readfic/6575673/16807806

* * *

Ahsoka takes a deep breath and refrains from Force-flipping the nearest table. She's lost in the Senate Office building. Aides, Senators, and other important people roam the halls, looking either very busy, or very smug. Outside of almost every door are guards. Some are dressed in the traditional purple armor, and others wear the military uniforms of their native systems. Ahsoka and her red Astromech droid, R7-A7, are out of place with how casual they look. R7 beeps, and Ahsoka looks down at him.

"I'm not afraid," she says. R7 beeps again. "Fine!" Ahsoka raises a hand in order to get the attention of the nearest aide, who walks by while balancing two trays laden with coffees.

"Excuse me?"

But the aide rushes by without stopping or slowing down, leaving Ahsoka behind. Ahsoka hums and tries again with another aide, but they're on a comlink call and they hold up a finger at Ahsoka to shush her as they pass by.

Rude, R7 beeps. Ahsoka rolls her eyes.

"You said it, R7. Come on." Ahsoka leads the way down the hall until she's blocked by a hover-dolly that's parked before an open door. A Pantoran girl a little older than her steps into the hallway and picks up one of the boxes form the dolly. She's pretty, and her light purple hair is pulled back away from her face in a ponytail.

"Hello," she says. Her voice is a nice alto. "Can I help you?"

"I'm kind of lost," Ahsoka says. "Where's the nearest exit?"

"You're close," the girl says. She puts the box back down and points down the hallway where Ahsoka came form. "This building's like a circle, you know how all the hallways curve? There are exits at every quarter. If you go out one door and find yourself in another hallway, then you just keep going out the door in front. You'll get outside eventually."

"Thanks!" Ahsoka says. When she steps back, she bumps into someone. "Oops, sorry."

A tall, middle-aged, Pantoran man with a scar across his chin looks down at Ahsoka intently.

"Oh! I'm really sorry, Senator! I'll just…."

The Pantoran man sets his large hands down on Ahsoka's shoulders, freezing her in place.

"Senator Chuchi?" He asks. His deep, gravelly voice is a lot more gentle than Ahsoka expected as he addresses the Pantoran girl.

"It's alright, Captain, thank you," the girl says, and the man lets go of Ahsoka. When Ahsoka looks at the girl again, she smiles apologetically. "He's not the Senator. I'm the Senator, Riyo Chuchi. Captain Magnus Sterno is in charge of my security detail."

Ahsoka would like the floor to swallow her up. Right now. Please. R7 beeps and rocks a little like he's dancing with glee, the little sadist.

"I'm sorry," Ahsoka says. She can feel the stripes of her lekku darkening in embarrassment.

The Pantoran girl, Riyo, just smiles. She steps out of the way so that Magnus can pick up and carry both of the boxes into the office.

"It's alright! A lot of people think the same way when they first meet me." Riyo beckons Ahsoka and R7 into the office. The ceiling-to-floor windows let in copious amounts of light, and give a fantastic view of the Coruscant skyline.

Another Pantoran guard in his early-twenties walks along the walls and holds a device to any outlets and light fixtures in order to scan for bugs. When he sees Ahsoka, he pauses his sweep and gives Ahsoka a reassuring grin.

"Don't worry about it," he says. "You're the third person today who's mistaken Senator Chuchi for an aide."

"Titon," Magnus says in warning. The smile drops from the young guard's face and he returns to his sweep. Satisfied, Magnus opens the box and unpacks various electronic devices into the drawers of the desk.

"Did you just get elected?" Ahsoka asks. Riyo nods.

"First day today. I was a litigator back home."

"Corporate law?"

"Family law," Riyo says. She looks closer at Ahsoka, as if just noticing her. Ahsoka feels like she's just been put under a microscope and tries not the fidget. "I wasn't aware the Jedi occupied themselves with different fields of law."

"Well, really just Military Law." Ahsoka straightens up. "My master says that the Jedi are allied with the Republic, so we should know how the Republic works."

"Your master is very wise."

"Yes, although I think he uses it as an excuse to spend more time with his close friend, who happens to be a senator."

Riyo covers her mouth with her hand to stifle a giggle. At sound of her laugh, the corners of Magnus's mouth twitch and Titon looks over his shoulder at them, incredulous. Ahsoka can't help but smile back.

"I must repay you for your generosity, Senator," Ahsoka says. "Will you have lunch with me?"

"Master Jedi, are you asking me out on a date?"

"Ah uh," Ahsoka says intelligently. "I walked into that one, didn't I?"

"Indeed. You…oh."

Two people, a human and a light green Rodian, stand in Riyo's open doorway.

"My aides have arrived," Riyo says, disappointed. "I'm sorry, Master Jedi. Perhaps another time?"

"Ahsoka Tano," Ahsoka says. "My name is Ahsoka Tano." She steps outside the office with R7 and once the door slides shut behind them, she sighs.

R7 beeps and whistles. How can you still be hungry after eating your foot?

"Can you not?" Ahsoka asks, the stripes on her lekku darken again from a fresh wave of humiliation. She closes her eyes and breathes in deep to center herself.

"Padawan Tano?" Magnus joins them in the hallway and closes the door behind him. "If you get food for yourself and Senator Chuchi and come back, she won't turn you away again."

"Huh?"

"Will this be enough?" Magnus presses a few credits into Ahsoka's hands. "You see, I've worked for the Senator while she was still on Pantora, and she has a bad habit of skipping lunch."

Ahsoka gasps. "She doesn't eat?"

"She forgets sometimes. Perhaps good company would be a better incentive for her to remember."

Ahsoka looks down at the shiny credits in her hand. She looks back up at Magnus, who stares back expectantly.

"Okay," Ahsoka says, and she goes out to get them some take-out. R7 rolls along at her side, beeping.

Maybe you're hungry for something else?

"Shut up, it's not like that."

* * *

The Senate District is filled with places to eat. Some eateries are built into the main office buildings, while others are packed together into one dedicated building for convenience. Twice a week, food speeders land in one of the parks en masse and sell street food. Enough people crowd into the space between the rows of speeders that it gets hectic. It gets loud.

The street vendors that sell trinkets and other oddities set up in the other half of the park and take full advantage of the crowds. Many of them only only bother showing up when the food speeders are here.

It's easy to spot an intern or a junior aide running errands; their clothes are smart and pressed, but they're not as flashy as the clothes that actual politicians wear. It's also easy to spot Jedi, and a lot of Jedi spend their time in the Federal District. Ahsoka doesn't stick out as much out here.

"What do Pantorans eat?" Ahsoka asks. "They don't have a set diet like Togruta do, right?"

R7 tells her that he's a mechanic, not a protocol droid. Ahsoka rolls her eyes and gets Riyo a box of fish and chips, and gets a couple foil-wrapped Gamorrean pork sausages for herself.

* * *

Riyo puts three data pads on her desk so that her aides can see. The human is a little younger than her and is still in the Coruscant Republic Academy, so Riyo will have to replace her when summer is over and school starts again. The Rodian is in their early twenties. They're gaining experience before they get a job in a law firm.

"This is the Pantoran data pad," Riyo puts a hand on the blue data pad. "Any information that has to do with Pantora is on this pad, including any messages I get from Pantoran officials. This is the Senate data pad." Here, Riyo puts a hand on the black data pad. "Any information that has to do with the Senate is on this pad. This is my personal data pad." Riyo gestures to the last pad, which is white and palm-sized. "Neither of you have password access to any of these pads, but you must know what they look like and what they do, so that you know how important they are.

"When I'm not in my office, and you see these out, please lock them in my desk. I'll do my best to lock them up myself when I leave, but in the event that I cannot, please do it for me."

The door slides open, revealing Magnus. "Senator Chuchi," he says, "Padawan Tano is back for her appointment."

"I don't remember an appointment," Riyo murmurs to herself.

"She brought food for the both of you."

"Oh!" Who is Riyo to turn down such a generous offer? "Please send her in. Thank you, Bivi, Vigo. I'll give you your own data pads when you come back."

The two aides pick up their bags and take their leave. Riyo sighs, takes off her suit coat, and hangs it over the armrest of her chair. She considers rolling up the sleeves of her button-up shirt, but decides not to. Ahsoka peeps in, and when Riyo beckons to her, she comes in and pulls up a chair.

"Did you finish unpacking?" Ahsoka asks as she hands Riyo her box of fish and chips.

"Thanks and yes," Riyo says. Unfortunately, her office is still very spartan. "Most senators divide the space into two offices: one for them and the other for a secretary. Although I've seen an office that used the extra space as a sitting area. I might do that."

"As long as you don't use it for a cot," Magnus says. "Senator Chuchi, I'll be taking my break."

"Yes, Captain. I'll see you later."

"Did you sleep in your old office too?" Ahsoka asks. Riyo blushes indigo.

"No! Maybe once or twice, when I was working on difficult cases."

"So, yes?" Ahsoka asks. "It's not that bad. I'm pretty used to sleeping in all sorts of places."

"Huh? Oh, of course. The Jedi command the clone armies. You get sleep wherever you can?"

"Pretty much. I haven't slept in the same place for a week since I became a padawan."

Riyo hesitates. "And that's alright with you?"

"Yeah. I'm a Jedi." Ahsoka puffs out her chest in pride. "I've dedicated my life to serving others and upholding peace and justice. Right now, the best way to do that is by fighting in this war for the Republic."

The two of them launch onto a discussion about the Clone Wars. Riyo, who has only followed the War thus far through the HoloNet News and through her connections in the Pantoran Assembly, is surprisingly well-informed, but within ten minutes of talking to Ahsoka, who has actually fought in some of the campaigns, she's noticed a few discrepancies. The two of them rig up a small, dusty holoprojector, connect it to Riyo's data pad, and bring up a hologram globe of the planet Christophsis.

"Christophsis mines are under the strict control of their guilds," Riyo says. "Either that or they're owned by private companies based on Christophsis. I can understand the Separatists opening illegal mines, but the Republic?"

Ahsoka shrugs. "When we won the battle against the Separatists, the Christophsis Senator just gave the Separatist mines to the Republic."

"No doubt making the minerals incredibly cheap for the Republic," Riyo says. She falls silent, staring at the hologram.

"What are you thinking?" Ahsoka asks.

"I would like to say many things, but none of them are fit for polite company." Riyo says. "The Christophsis Senator is my coworker now, after all."

Ahsoka smiles. "That wouldn't stop me from saying anything."

"Alas, Padawan Tano, not all of us have lightsabers to resort to when diplomacy fails."

"That's okay. A blaster does the job too."

Riyo's jaw drops. "Padawan Tano!"

"Do you not have one?" Ahsoka teases. "I could get one for you. Something small maybe?"

"You're incorrigible!" Riyo turns away to hide her smile. "Thank you, but no. I have enough blasters."

"What?" Ahsoka asks. "You have blasters?"

"This is Coruscant, of course everyone has blasters," Riyo says. She's cut off when the data pad connected to the holoprojector goes on screensaver. The holoprojector cycles through family pictures of Pantorans. Some of them sit in their homes, others are in the Pantoran wilderness and most of their faces are covered in frosty goggles.

"Your family?" Ahsoka asks.

"Of a sort," Riyo says. "Past clients still send me thank you notes and pictures. I keep them on my data pad to remind me why I'm here."

Someone knocks on Riyo's door, and it slides open, revealing Magnus.

"Senator Chuchi," Magnus says, "your aides are back."

"Already? But they just left." Riyo looks at the clock. She and Ahsoka have been talking for over an hour. She turns back to Ahsoka, who looks just as disappointed as Riyo feels.

"Thank you, Padawan Tano," Riyo says. "You didn't have to get me lunch. I appreciate it very much."

"It's no problem, Senator." Ahsoka stands up and dumps the empty foil wrapping in the trash bin. "Thanks for having lunch with me."

"Padawan Tano," Riyo says, her eyes are a little unsure. "I'd like very much to do this again sometime. My door is always open to you."

"Thank you, Senator." Ahsoka says. "I'll see you later."

Ahsoka meets R7 out in the hall. Titon and the aides walk into the office and door slides shut after them. Magnus turns to Ahsoka.

"Thank you for your time," he says. "I've not heard Senator Chuchi laugh like that in quite a while. Please come back soon."

* * *

Over the next few weeks, Riyo's office quickly fills up with small boxes of single-use data pads that senators use to look over sensitive information that can't be transmitted over a signal, and boxes of data cards. Three holoscreens are set up in the empty space away from Riyo's desk at a height so that she can see them while standing comfortably.

Every bill that crosses Riyo's desk has a context that she isn't familiar with. She knows exactly how it would effect Pantora and while she could just vote depending on that information, she must know why they've created a bill for the subject in the first place.

It also wouldn't hurt to be a little more familiar with Coruscant and Republic laws.

The office door whooshes open and Bivi comes in. Her shirt-tail is untucked from her skirt, and her sleeves are rolled up to her elbows.

"Senator," she says, "Padawan Tano's here to see you."

Ahsoka waves at Riyo from the doorway. In her other hand, she carries a small grocery bag. "Is this a good time?"

"Hello, Ahsoka," Riyo says. "Come in."

"Senator," Bivi gestures to the stacks of boxes. "Which one?"

"The stack on the right, Bivi. Yes, that one. The data pads go to the clerk's office, and the data cards go back to the archives."

"Okay."

"Thank you, Bivi."

Bivi's able to carry both boxes, but she's barely able to see over the top. She leans back so that the boxes don't fall forward and out of her arms, and walks out of the office. The door shuts after her.

Ahsoka looks to where Bivi last disappeared. "Is she gonna be okay?"

"She'll be fine." Riyo sets the holoscreens on sleep and joins Ahsoka at her desk, which is surprisingly clear of any electronics save the clock and the lamp. Riyo sinks into her chair with a sigh. Bivi might have been disheveled from running around, but Riyo's just as rumpled.

"Are you okay?" Ahsoka asks. Riyo sighs again and shakes her head.

"I met Senator Amidala today."

"Oh yeah? How was that?"

"Terrifying. I haven't felt so stupid since my first day of law school."

"Oh." Ahsoka winces. "I'm sorry."

"Don't get me wrong, Senator Amidala is a gracious woman; she just wanted to test me. And I must have passed, because she's asked me to write an article for the HoloNet News against the Enhanced Security and Enforcement Bill."

"What's that?" Ahsoka hands Riyo a sealed, large cup of hot soup.

"If passed, it would give the Chancellor the power to approve search and seizures without a search warrant. It would also give him the power to tap into private comlink transmissions." Riyo pops the top off the cup and takes a sip. "Those who support it want to catch any Separatists and Separatist sympathizers who are living among us. They think that they're spies or they're going to carry out attacks against us."

"So why go against the bill?"

"There's no guarantee that it would actually help discern who's a Separatist and who's not. It would also definitely take away the rights of Republic citizens. Yes, these are dangerous times, but times will always be dangerous. We shouldn't have to sacrifice our rights for the illusion of safety."

Ahsoka pauses in eating her kebob. "You must've been a fantastic lawyer."

"Ah, well." Riyo's ears turn indigo. "I helped a lot of people. I miss it, actually. On Pantora I knew what I was about. But here on Coruscant, the laws are different, the government is different, the culture is different. I'm very unprepared."

"You didn't want to be a senator?"

"Chairman Cho insisted I become the senator as soon as the post opened up, and no one says 'no' to Chairman Cho." Riyo drinks more of her soup and her expression turns thoughtful. "I think he did it so that I would be too busy to publish essays about his policies in the Pantoran news."

"Publish—wait a minute!" Ahsoka gasps in mock outrage. "You gave me so much grief about starting drama and here you are and you start drama too!"

"I…okay yes, you caught me!" Riyo laughs when Ahsoka crosses her arms and pouts. "Forgive me?"

"Maybe," Ahsoka says, breaking into a smirk. "So you're used to starting fires?"

"Yes, and Senator Amidala found out. I don't know how she found out; that woman must know everything that goes on in the Senate. But she came to me and told me that I was the best choice to write the argument against the bill. So here I am."

"You'll do great!"

Riyo shakes her head. "Writing for Pantora was alright; my readers were only Pantorans and the Pantoran diaspora. And yes, those essays may have put me on lists, but I expected that. This is the first time I'll be writing something that the entire Republic will read. That's thousands of systems."

Ahsoka's gaze softens. "You'll still do great, Riyo. Have faith."

"Thank you, Ahsoka. If I do this right, public opinion will sway against the bill."

"What will happen then?"

"Senators are influenced by constituents and constituents are influenced by public opinion. Worst case scenario, the bill will be postponed. Best case scenario, the Senate will vote against it." Riyo frowns. "Worst-worst case scenario, my work is wasted and the Senate approves the bill."

"That won't happen."

"You're very confident."

Ahsoka smiles and shrugs.

Later that week, Riyo's essay is published in the HoloNet News. Within half a day, it's all that's being talked about over all the news networks and even over radio talkshows.

Riyo hasn't watched, or listened, to any of them. She doesn't want to know what's being said about it. In order to further isolate herself from possible scathing commentary, she's shut herself in her office to tackle more work.

She's making considerable headway when her comlink beeps with an incoming call. She answers it with the push of a button.

"Hello?"

"Hello, this is Lyrax Pentigure of HNN. May I please speak with Senator Riyo Chuchi?"

"Speaking. What can I do for you, Mr. Pentigure?"

"Your article is making quite a stir, Senator. I'm putting together a panel for my debate show tonight and I'd hoped to give you a spot."

"Oh!" Riyo's head spins and she sits down. A spot on one of the most popular news network debate shows? "I'm very flattered, but I'm afraid I must decline."

"Won't you reconsider? The debate is timed for only ten minutes."

"My apologies, but my answer stands. Everything I'd say about the issue is already included in my essay. I'd only be repeating myself. Perhaps another time?"

"Then I'll be in touch. Thank you for your time, Senator."

"Goodbye, Mr. Pentigure." Riyo ends the call and puts the comlink back on her desk.

Writing is one thing, but a broadcast? No. Maybe one day, when she isn't still mistaken for an academy student.

The next day, Riyo's office door whooshes open to reveal Padmé Amidala and another senator.

"Senator Amidala!" Riyo sets her holoscreens to sleep and meets Padmé with a handshake. She's seen Padmé before, but still hasn't reconciled all that with the fact that they're co-workers now.

"It's nice to see you!" Riyo says.

"It's nice to see you too, Senator Chuchi." Padmé gestures to the other senator. "This is my good friend, Senator Bail Organa."

Another heavy hitter. Is Riyo to meet all of the star movers and shakers today? She numbly shakes his hand.

"Congratulations on writing such a moving piece, Senator Chuchi." Bail says. "Thanks to you, the bill has been put on the list for today's order of business."

"You're very kind, Senator." Riyo hopes her voice keeps steady. "I'm glad to be of service."

"Shall we go to the Senate Building?"

"Yes."

As they make their way to the Senate Chamber, the three of them speculate on what might happen with the bill and what they could do should the worst happen, but the bill ends up getting postponed, and Riyo stands a little bit straighter at the helm of her pod. After the Senate business is concluded, and after Riyo is finished shaking hands with other senators, she and Magnus leave and meet Ahsoka and R7 outside.

"Riyo!" Ahsoka rushes forward to envelop the older girl in a hug.

"Ahsoka?" Riyo takes a step back to keep from falling over, but returns the hug.

"I came as soon as I heard! You did it."

"The bill is only postponed, but yes, I'll take whatever victories I can get."

"We should celebrate!" Ahsoka pulls back to take Riyo's hands. "Come on!"

"Senator Chuchi," Magnus says. "I shall take my leave."

"What?" Ahsoka asks. "But what about guarding Riyo?"

"A Jedi will be more than enough protection for the Senator," Magnus says.

"He's got a good point," Ahsoka says.

"He does," Riyo says. "Please take the rest of the day off, Captain. Have fun!"

"Thank you, Senator. Good day, ladies." Magnus gives them both a curt nod before leaving.

"So what did you have in mind, Ahsoka?"

"Watching the sunset." Ahsoka jerks a thumb at one of the taller buildings in the Coruscant skyline. "From up there, with this." She holds up a grocery bag. "You in?"

"Yes, except not even my security clearance will get us up there," Riyo says.

"Who needs clearance when you have R7?" Ahsoka asks. R7 bleeps and whistles with glee.

When they step out of the elevator at the top the building, they find themselves in an observation deck that's encased with glass to protect those inside against the wind. The Galactic City sprawls below them in all directions, gleaming in the setting sun like an ocean of metal. R7 rolls right to the windows and coos before falling silent, and Riyo leans against the safety railing.

"Beautiful."

"Yeah," Ahsoka says. She takes out a dark bottle that's sealed with wax. "Ta da!"

"How do you have that?" Riyo asks. Ahsoka grins and hands her the bottle. Riyo traces the label with her fingertips.

"Ambrostine," Riyo reads. "I didn't know the Jedi had such expensive taste."

"Some people donate the strangest things to the Jedi Order," Ahsoka says. "Whenever we get things like this, we just sell it back for the credits."

"And they won't notice a missing bottle?"

"You act like it's the only bottle missing from the crate." Ahsoka takes the bottle back and opens it with a pop. "It's not."

BEEP BEEP. Riyo's comlink sounds from her pocket. She takes it out and answers it.

"Cousin Riyo!" A chipper, tenor voice comes through. "I read your article in the news!"

"Cousin Kaito," Riyo says. Her voice and expression are schooled into a neutral monotone.

"I swear to the Gods, your cheek will get our entire family killed," the voice drawls. "Must you keep provoking powerful men?"

"I'm only getting started. Why have you called?"

"Is this Riyo? I thought I was talking to the Blizzard God for a moment there. I'm trying to look out for you."

"You keep telling yourself that," Riyo says through clenched teeth. "And you'll power through it, as you usually do."

"Indeed. As a result of your article, people are sending tokens of their thanks and admiration for you to the house. I'm forwarding them to you, so expect a substantial care package. Unless you'd rather I throw it all out?"

"…Thank you." Riyo looks like she would rather spit than say those words to him.

"That's more like it." The comlink practically oozes with smugness. "Was that so hard?"

"…Yes."

"Ugh, you'll do best to let go of all that anger, cousin, lest you get a stroke."

"Goodbye, Kaito."

"Goodbye!"

Riyo ends the com and sinks bonelessly onto the nearest bench.

"What was that?" Ahsoka asks. "I've never heard you talk that way to anyone before."

"That was my distant cousin, Kaito Chuchi." Riyo accepts a cup from Ahsoka and downs the shot of Ambrostine. It burns sweet and citrusy, and Riyo exhales the heated fumes that crawl back up her throat. "The man has no sense of propriety."

"That bad, huh?" Ahsoka sits down on the bench next to her, her own cup in hand.

"It's…ugh, it's complicated." Riyo turns her cup around in her hands. "Sorry, I started without you."

"Hah! It sounded like you needed it." Ahsoka pours her another shot.

Riyo and Ahsoka watch the sky sour from reddish orange into soft pinks and purples. Because of the Coruscanti smog, not many of the stars come out, but they can pretend that the satellites and high-flying speeders winking in the sky are stars instead. Soon enough, the two of them lose track of the number of shots they've had. Riyo develops an indigo blush that reaches up to her hairline and dips down her neck. It makes her yellow facial marks stand out more. The both of them have moved to the walkway beyond the glass, and they sit at the safety railing and let their legs dangle off the edge.

"What's it like to have a family?" Ahsoka asks. She leans her head against the metal railing. "Jedi take younglings from their parents when they're young, so we don't form attachments."

Riyo gives Ahsoka another searching look, but it's gone a heartbeat later.

"Infuriating," Riyo says. "But also wonderful. My cousin might not be a shining example, but my mother…my mother believed that I could do anything. Be anything. She would move heaven and hell to help me if I were in trouble. From what you've told me, Ahsoka, my mother sounds similar to what your master is for you. And also that clone trooper captain."

Ahsoka mulls it over. Could it really be that simple? It's true that Anakin would never give up on her, and neither would Rex. She'd do everything she could to protect them too. Ahsoka smiles.

"Yeah. I think you're right."

* * *

The mess in Riyo's office eventually clears, then builds up again. Riyo and her aide, Vigo, are knee-deep in Pantoran data cards when Ahsoka comes into the office again.

"Thank you!" Vigo throws down their data pad and hugs Ahsoka before they practically run out of the office.

"You're welcome?" Ahsoka takes a tentative step into the office. "What did I do?"

"Vigo's a little overwhelmed." Riyo steps over to her desk to pick up her jacket. "We've been researching Pantoran laws all week."

"What for?"

"Chairman Cho is…a demanding man," Riyo says as she shrugs on her jacket. "And the Pantoran people are just as demanding. Pantora is a prosperous moon, but it's still just a moon. It's running out of space and resources and the Chairman has proposed a bill that would allow Pantora to colonize Orto Plutonia." Riyo waves a hand over the boxes of data chips. "The bill is quite dense, and I've been assigned to a team of lawyers who're combing through it for any irregularities."

"No wonder Vigo wanted out."

"I admit I can be a little intense, but Vigo wants to be a paralegal someday, and this is a part of what paralegals do. Come on, I could use a change of scenery too."

The two girls end up eating lunch in the plaza not far from where the food speeders park. A few other sentients are already there, hanging around an extravagant fountain depicting the ancient Coruscanti gods of justice and sitting on the benches while they eat and talk. A couple of them smoke. A few teenagers, playing hooky from school, practice hoverboard tricks against the planters.

"What have you been up to lately?" Riyo asks as they unwrap Bantha burritos. "Anything you can tell me?"

"I fought General Grievous last week, and I lost."

"You lost?" Riyo repeats, incredulous. "We are talking about the General Grievous that leads most of the Separatist armies? The Grievous whose hobbies include killing Jedi and taking their lightsabers?"

"Yeah."

"And you think you lost? Ahsoka, you're alive."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, you're only what? Fifteen? You're a padawan and you fought Grievous, and he didn't kill you."

"I should've been able to fight him," Ahsoka says. "He isn't even Force-sensitive."

"Someone's ambitious," Riyo mutters to herself. "You're too hard on yourself. How long are padawans padawans?"

"Years, usually."

"So you just started. Think of it this way: Grievous has killed many Jedi. Not just padawans, but legitimate Jedi knights and masters, yes?"

"…Yeah."

"But you fought him and you didn't die. If you do that well against him now, think about how well you'll do against him when you get better."

Ahsoka is silent for a moment. "You're a blaster, you know that?"

Riyo smiles and takes a bite out of her burrito.

* * *

Note Bene: Whoa, you're still here? I must be doing something right. If you want to see more, then you'll be ecstatic to know that at the posting of this chapter, I'm working on chapter 17/19. I wanted to hold off on posting until I was completely finished with this story, but this fandom's having a bad time right now, so screw it. I'm just gonna start. (Context: this chapter was first posted right after the Star Wars fandom lost Carrie Fisher.) Barring any situation that keeps me from posting, I'm going to release a new chapter every Friday until all of it's out here. Thus said, the tags may be updated in the future to accommodate any new information that comes up in later chapters, because I don't want to spoil anything for any readers.

Yes, the title of this story is a pun. No, I don't regret it.

Please leave feedback. Let me know what you liked, or what you didn't like. I'll see you readers next week.


	2. Out, Damned Spot

Eventually, as Riyo finishes plowing through Chairman Cho's bill, the data cards and data pads leave her office, and the waves of messages from Pantoran lawyers die down. She sends off her approval of the bill and closes the case, but instead of opening a new case afterwards, (and there are many to choose from,) she decides that she would prefer not to.

Early in the morning the next day, after slapping off the alarm clock, Riyo picks up her black data pad and sends a few messages.

Dear Bivi, Vigo,  
I'll be out of the office today. Please take the day off.  
\- Riyo Chuchi

Dear Captain Sterno,  
Please have your team dress in casual clothes today.  
\- Riyo

Today, Riyo foregoes her office outfits for sturdy trousers, worn leather boots, and a soft jacket with a hood. She pulls her long purple hair back and weaves it into a loose braid. When she turns to the mirror, she's impressed. She almost looks like a regular teenager.

But when she leaves her apartment building, she doesn't meet Magnus like she usually does; she meets Titon. His dark hair is swept back and he wears a leather jacket and sunglasses.

"Sen-uh, Riyo!" He smiles and offers his arm and Riyo's struck by how young he is. When Titon's in uniform, it's easy for her to assume he's much older than she is; to group him in with Magnus's generation. But now, she remembers that the age gap between him and her is the same gap between her and Ahsoka. A pittance age gap, really.

"Captain Sterno thought this would be more inconspicuous." Riyo says more than asks. Titon's smile turns apologetic.

"Yes."

Riyo peers up at him. "This is also a test. He's testing you."

"Yeah!" Titon says again, a little unnerved. "How did…are you sure you're not Force-sensitive?"

"Quite sure. Come on, lots to do today." Riyo takes Titon's arm and they set off down the street towards a shuttle station.

"Where are we going?"

Riyo brings him to a Pantoran Temple. There are four local Pantoran Temples, one for each major god in the pantheon, but the one Riyo takes Titon to is the one dedicated to the Sea Goddess.

The Temple itself is reminiscent of a sea cavern (temples dedicated to Her usually are) and Riyo and Titon descend the roughly-hewn stone steps and walk through a short, dark tunnel until they come into an enormous, round cavern that's lit by hundreds of wax candles sitting in the shelves carved into the walls. Wood pews are set up in rows facing what passes as the front, where a dark pool of water is built into the smooth floor. This pool is wide enough for even Titon, tall as he is, to float in the middle and stretch out without touching a toe or a finger to any of the sides.

A middle-aged Pantoran man, soaking wet from head to toe, sits in one of the pews. His eyes are unfocused and unblinking as he mechanically passes a rough towel over his head to dry himself. Across the aisle from him is a crone, muttering prayers while thumbing a string of beads. Apart from her whispers, and the rustling noises that Riyo and Titon make as they move around, the temple is silent.

Riyo slides a credit through the slot of a donation box and takes a slim, wood stick from a ceramic cup filled with ashes. She lights a candle with it, then jams the stick back into the cup of ash to douse it. She and Titon watch the candle flicker for a few moments.

"I'm going into the pool," Riyo whispers.

"You don't have to do that," Titon says, but Riyo is already unzipping her jacket and toeing off her boots, leaving her in just her dark shirt, pants, and sleeve tattoo.

The intricate yellow geometric designs snake down Riyo's left arm and swirl over the backs of both hands. Like every other Pantoran, she usually keeps these other tattoos covered up with sleeves and gloves when she's away from her home planet. She gives her jacket and boots to Titon.

"Sen-uh-Riyo!" he hisses. The crone shoots him a nasty look, and he lowers his voice.

"What if you lose your hands?"

"That's kind of the point, isn't it? Don't worry, I'll only lose them for a moment." Riyo steps to the edge of the pool and takes a deep breath. She dives into the pool, and swims down, down, down into the dark.

All Pantoran children learn about the Sea Goddess when they're young, to keep them from going in the ocean and drowning. She rules over the sea creatures, sailors, and the underworld, where souls go after they depart the world of the living. Souls like Riyo's mother.

It's freezing in the pool, and the temperature drops more the deeper Riyo swims. Alarms start ringing in her head. Pantorans were made to withstand the cold; they kind of don't feel it, so when something's this damn cold, it's not…right. When she loses feeling in her hands, she stops swimming down and closes her eyes against the dark.

The movement of the water around her face almost feels like a caress. It could be a caress.

Don't look.

Riyo's heart shoots into her throat and beats a mile a minute. Something smooths the tendrils of hair out of her face. Something else bumps into her calves like how sharks brush up against swimmers.

Don't look.

The next thing Riyo knows, she's flat on her back on the temple floor, gulping in lungfuls of air. Frost has formed on her lashes and in her eyebrows. Titon's image swims into focus, worry in his gold eyes. He drapes one of the temple's towels over her.

"Are you okay?" Titon asks. Riyo just spits lingering water out of her mouth and keeps breathing in order to steady her heart. She sits up and holds up a hand so that Titon can pull her back onto her feet.

"Yes." Riyo wipes her face on the towel. She's shaking for reasons that have nothing to do with the temperature. "Ah…that never gets easier."

"You do this every year?" Titon asks. Riyo wraps the towel around her shoulders and looks hard up at him, who raises his hands in apology.

"You're lucky you don't have a reason to." Riyo gathers her things and pads over to an empty pew behind the middle-aged man, who's still drying himself with stilted movements.

When Riyo is dry enough, she and Titon leave the temple and get back on the shuttle line. It's crowded on the shuttle, and they must stand close to each other. Titan's aftershave smells like cedar.

"I don't do Sea Dives, but I do a Snow Walk every year for one whole week. I go with a few friends from the military academy," Titon says.

"Is it hard?" Riyo asks.

"You've never done it?"

Riyo shakes her head no. "I'm not a warrior."

"You still fight for our people. The Blizzard God would accept you."

"I'll think about it."

A Twi'lek woman lightly touches Riyo's shoulder. "Aren't you Senator Chuchi?"

A murmur ripples through the shuttle as other passengers turn to look.

"Doesn't she look so much like her?" Titon asks. The Twi'lek's eyes widen in surprise. "She's entering in a look-alike contest today."

"Oh. Oh!" The Twi'lek smiles apologetically. "She does."

"Good luck!" someone shouts from the front of the shuttle. Other passengers wish them the same.

"Thanks!" Titon and Riyo wave to them as they get off on the next stop. They stand together on the platform and watch the shuttle pull away and fly off.

"Well done," Riyo says. Titon straightens his jacket and gives her a crooked smile.

"All in a day's work," he says. Riyo gets the feeling that his smile has gotten him out of trouble before. Or into it. At any rate, it isn't going to work on her.

* * *

When Ahsoka next comes back from her most recent tour of duty, she drags Riyo out of her office to check out an inventor's faire that's happening in the next quadrant over. Riyo and Titon have dressed down again and the three of them, and R7, shuttle-hop to the faire.

"Thanks for coming with me," Ahsoka says as they disembark the last shuttle. She wears a poncho to hide her lightsaber. "I know it's pretty last minute."

"Nonsense. It sounds fun." Riyo links her arm though Ahsoka's to keep from losing her in the thickening crowd.

"And I sure don't mind hanging out with you ladies." Titon places his body strategically between Riyo and the crowd and winks at Ahsoka.

Ahsoka laughs, and Riyo gets a twinge of annoyance in her chest.

"Yeah, no." Ahsoka rolls her eyes. "Sorry, my guy, but your efforts are wasted on me. Jedi, remember?"

"On the contrary." Titon pauses to give an attendant their tickets. "That makes you a perfect test subject. Gotta keep my skills sharp somehow."

"You fancy yourself a ladies' man?" Ahsoka asks.

"I've had my share of dates, yes," Titon says. The conversation trails off as they watch a tank made to resemble a Dathomir burra fish rolls by. A few small children chase after it, squealing in their excitement. A couple of them pull their parents along by the hand. Professional engineers and programmers attend, of course, but a few laypeople bring their children too in the hopes of instilling a love for science in them. A few harried academy instructors and chaperones have also brought their students to the faire and they struggle to keep everyone together.

Ahsoka, Riyo, Titon, and R7 stroll through the faire, taking in the sights and sounds. They stop to watch a drone vs probe cage fight, and walk through a few interactive art installations. Mixed in with the technology and art are food booths, so the smell of sugar and fruit mixes in with the smell of metal and oil. Riyo drops a couple credits at one booth to get a small basket of deep-fried blumfruit, which she shares with Ahsoka and Titon. Ahsoka bites into a piece and squeaks.

"Ah, it's hot!" Ahsoka breaths through her mouth to cool the food down. Titon stops mid-reach into the basket and draws his hand back.

"I'll wait until they're cooled down."

"Ah! Yeah, let me just…." Ahsoka goes to the food booth to get a cup of water. When she comes back, she looks around and asks, "where's R7?"

"He said something about Astromech mods and left a few minutes ago," Titon says. "I told him to meet us in the Dark Room."

"If he doesn't get impounded," Ahsoka says, but she doesn't seem all that concerned.

The Dark Room is an old warehouse filled with light-up art installations. There's a cannon that blows huge smoke rings, five-foot tall artichoke-shaped lamps that blink in different colored lights, and an ephemeral glowing tree. It's quiet in here compared to the loud, bustling crowd outside. The people in the room don't have to shout at each other in order be heard.

It's also less crowded in here, and Titon doesn't have to play a living shield anymore. He hangs back to keep a better lookout.

"You don't have to answer this, but isn't Titon kind of too pretty to be a bodyguard?" Ahsoka asks.

"He is conventionally handsome, yes," Riyo says. "Magnus once told me that because I'm a senator, my guards must look nice in military dress. I can't believe I'm going to say this, but I suspect Titon's coasted by on his looks for most of his life."

"Which is why he wasn't able to get into officer's school?"

"Harsh," Riyo says. Ahsoka gives an apologetic shrug. "But not untrue. Also, you must have picked that detail from my mind. That is something Jedi can do, right?"

"Yeah." Ahsoka cringes. "Sorry. If it helps, your thoughts are super clear?"

Riyo smiles despite herself. "I'm not a window, Ahsoka. If you feel bad enough about it, then maybe you could teach me how to block off my mind."

Ahsoka gasps in mock outrage. "Blackmail."

"Extortion. Deal?"

"Deal." Ahsoka hums. "I wonder if it's possible to teach that to someone who's not Force-sensitive."

"We'll just have to find out," Riyo says. "Anyways, Titon is a good man. I think he legitimately likes making sure people are safe, which is why he hasn't resorted to modeling."

"You mean, making sure you're safe," Ahsoka says.

"Are you implying…?"

"Yeah."

"Gods above, that better not be true or else he'll lose his job. That's not my policy," Riyo adds. "It's Magnus's."

"You don't see how he looks at you. What if he wasn't your bodyguard?"

"If he looks at me like you say he looks at me, and he wasn't my bodyguard, then it still wouldn't work." Riyo's voice softens. "He's not my type."

"So what is your type?"

"Why? Are you going to set me up with someone?"

Ahsoka rolls her eyes. "Yeah right. Besides you and Padmé, the only people I know are Jedi and troopers."

The two of them watch the glowing wheel turn for a few moments.

"I think you were right," Ahsoka says. Riyo almost snorts at how clumsy the change of subject is, but she isn't going to object.

"Of course I am," Riyo says. Ahsoka shoots her an incredulous look.

"Can you even hear me over your ego?"

Riyo laughs. "Sorry, I couldn't resist. What was I right about?"

"I think you were right about the whole 'getting better' thing," Ahsoka says. "I fought a legit Sith with Master Unduli, and it was the first time I didn't run away. Usually, when Master Skywalker and I fight a Sith, we only try to fend them off so that we can run away, but not this time."

"That's great!" Riyo says. "Who was the Sith?"

Ahsoka shudders. "Asajj Ventress. Master Skywalker fought her alone once, when he was a padawan. He didn't get into specifics, but he said that she was pretty sadistic."

"That's Count Dooku's assassin, right?" Riyo asks. "HNN did a profile on her once. She's supposed to be dangerous."

"Oh, she is. She's also kind of nuts. Master Unduli and I outnumbered her, but she laughed in our faces. Like she was just toying with us." Ahsoka trails off as she loses herself in thought. "I've never heard anyone laugh like that before."

"Perhaps it's a symptom of the Dark Side?" Riyo asks. "But Count Dooku always looks so calm during his HoloNet News segments."

"That's what I thought too," Ahsoka says. "The Force is très mysterious."

Riyo's eyes light up. " Je ne savais pas que tu parlais Twi'leki."

"Uh, I only know 'oui,' 'non,' and 'ne me touche pas.' You know, the important things."

"That's…still good." Riyo tries and fails to keep herself from smiling.

"I'm way better at Mando'a. Do you speak that too?"

Riyo shakes her head no. "I haven't had the opportunity to learn."

R7 rolls up to the two of them, beeping faster than any of them can blink. Horror dawns on Ahsoka's face.

"What did you do?" Ahsoka asks, but R7 rolls past them towards Titon. "R7, what did you do?"

"What happened?" Riyo asks. Ahsoka takes her hand and pulls her along in urgency.

"We have to go."

"Now?" Riyo asks. They all step out into the sunlight.

"We should be…not here when they test out that new Bacta formula," Ahsoka says. "R7? R7! When we get out of here, we're having a talk."

R7 whistles something back at Ahsoka, making her fume.

BOOM. The floor rocks underneath them, making Riyo lose her footing. Ahsoka tugs her close to her side to keep her from falling over. The people around them are not as lucky, and some of them shout in surprise as they fall to the floor.

"Ah kark," Ahsoka mutters as a black cloud of smoke rises into the sky form the other side of the faire. The crowd around them gasps and points at it in awe. Riyo, however, feels pretty safe for some reason.

"Moving, moving!" Titon ushers them towards the exit before the rest of the crowd stampedes. Ahsoka doesn't let go of Riyo until they're safe.

* * *

Riyo has been running on autopilot for the entire trip back to Coruscant from Pantora, and she's running on autopilot now, as she stands in her kitchen and cubes potatoes and carrots. She figures that even though she doesn't feel like eating anything now, and hasn't eaten anything in the last twelve hours, she's got to feel hungry sometime, right?

Riyo drops the cubes in an empty crock pot. She pours in water, then pulls several seasoning shakers out from a cabinet and puts some of each in the pot too. While she does this, she marvels at how she isn't being charged with treason.

Maybe it's too soon to think that. There's an investigation going on after all.

All senators have apartments on Coruscant. Riyo's apartments are fairly modest compared to the extravagant quarters that other senators have. Location aside, it could easily be mistaken for an apartment belonging to a university student. The kitchen, for example, looks nice until you open up the cabinets and drawers and find out that the cutlery and tableware don't match. The tableware is even made of plastic and cheap ceramic.

When the vegetables are done, Riyo moves on to the Nerf meat. She cuts the meat up into chunks with practiced dexterity and rolls them in flour. These, she braises in a pan with oil before dropping them in the crock pot too.

Crock pot, set. Cooking, done. You're welcome, Future Riyo.

Riyo dumps the cutting board, knife, and pan in the sink and leaves the kitchen. Have fun cleaning that up, Future Riyo.

The Speaker of the Pantoran Assembly is fairly confident that the investigation will find no fault with Riyo's actions. That they'll declare the entire incident an accident.

The living room could use some cleaning up. A few data cards are scattered over the coffee table and one of them has been flipped over to serve as an impromptu coaster. Blankets have been thrown haphazardly over the old couch. Riyo lies down on the couch and sighs as it molds to her body. She reaches into her pocket, turns off her comlink, and drops it onto the rug.

* * *

The Speaker of the Pantoran Assembly was on the older end of middle-aged, shaved bald, with deep-set eyes and a mellow voice that deceived everyone who first met him into thinking he was a pushover. Riyo received his call on her comlink a week ago.

"The Chairman is on his way to Coruscant," the Speaker said. He looked as if he hadn't been eating or sleeping well lately. "He wants to strong-arm the Republic into waging war for him."

"What do you mean?" Riyo asked.

"The Clone outpost on Orto Plutonia was attacked. Chairman Cho suspects the Separatists, and he's…he's mobilized far more troops than we can support in preparation to wage war against them. He's hoping to bolster his ranks with clone troopers."

Gods, Riyo's been gone from Pantora for only a little less than a year, and the Assembly's already lost control of Chairman Cho. Not that she's surprised by it. She suspected something like this would happen when she became senator.

"What am I to do?" Riyo asked.

"You're quite persuasive, Senator. If you were to talk to Chairman Cho, have him stand down…."

"I have no favor with the Chairman," Riyo said. In fact, she's sure that he would want nothing more than toss her into a secret political prison.

"You've convinced him to take less volatile actions in the past."

"No, I've shamed him into taking those actions. Let me correct myself, Speaker Houn; the Chairman despises me. In taking this post, I've relinquished what little power I might've had over him."

* * *

"Senator Chuchi didn't come in today," Vigo says to Ahsoka. They and a new aide are in the middle of cleaning up Riyo's office, and Titon is conducting another bug sweep. "She hasn't replied to any messages. She's probably just recovering from some illness."

"That's strange," Ahsoka says.

"Right? But I'm not gonna pry. Here." Vigo taps on their data pad. "I could take a message."

"No, that's okay. Thank you." Ahsoka leaves the office, but lingers in the hallway. She takes a deep breath and closes her eyes. Another deep breath and she reaches out with the Force. Something's not right.

"Padawan Tano."

"Ah!" Ahsoka's startled out of the meditation by Magnus, who stands in the hallway with her. "Captain Sterno!"

"You wish to speak with the Senator," Magnus says.

"Yeah. Is she okay?"

Magnus stares at her with enough intensity to make her feel as if she's said something wrong. It's similar to how Riyo sometimes scrutinizes things and people, and Ahsoka thinks that she and Magnus must have known each other for a very long time indeed, for his habits to become hers.

"She could use your company," Magnus finally says, and he gives Ahsoka Riyo's address.

* * *

The Blizzard God was the warriors' god. Any soldier who prayed to Him would be victorious, no matter what the odds. He favored the violent righteous, and the militant. His domain was in the wilderness, and in battlefields.

If you starved, you prayed to Him too. If He was merciful, He would save you. If He wasn't, He'd swallow you whole.

Chairman Cho was an idiot, but he was the Blizzard God's idiot, which was the only explanation anyone could offer as to how the Chairman survived multiple, bloody, military campaigns, a couple assassination attempts, and a really bad case of heat stroke.

Riyo thought Chairman Cho was an idiot before she became a senator, and she was reminded of it when she met him again in the Jedi Transport on their way to Orto Plutonia. He strutted about like the most vain of Naboo peacocks, ordering everyone around like they were common servants, including Riyo, which only confirmed that the Chairman didn't need her for this trip; he only needed her title. Frustrating as that was, she's worked with difficult clients before, and she tried to remain as detached as possible.

But when Chairman Cho declared war on the Talz, the gears in Riyo's head turned. There was only one way this could end, and she couldn't stop it.

Could the Blizzard God protect His favorite on a planet that didn't belong to Him?

Soon after that, Chairman Cho cut a pitiful figure, leaning against that speeder bike and wheezing. The closer Riyo got to him, the more she thought: how perfect is this?

Without Chairman Cho, there would be no overbearing army to drain the Pantoran reserves. The Assembly would not be reduced to picking up the Chairman's messes like underpaid nannies. Riyo could even go back home to Pantora now and then, instead of living out the rest of her life as a not-quite exile on Coruscant.

"You must avenge me!" Chairman Cho said, his voice harsh. He grabbed Riyo's shoulder, staining her blouse dark purple. "I order you to destroy the Talz!"

"I'm afraid I cannot do that, Chairman." Riyo gently brushed his hand off.

* * *

Riyo wakes up and goes to the refresher to wash her face. It hasn't been the first time someone's died in front of her, and it isn't as if she and the late Chairman were close, so really, she should buck up, unpack, and send an apology email to her aides for being AWOL. She opens up one of her traveling bags and freezes when she finds her white blouse, stained with blood.

While Chairman Cho might have been the biggest eopie, he still didn't deserve to die the way he did, did he? Riyo closes her bag and goes into her bedroom instead to change. After a couple minutes, she emerges wearing sweatpants and an oversized shirt and sinks into the couch again.

He kind of did it to himself. It's a horrible thought, and Riyo wouldn't be surprised if the Trickster Goddess Herself dragged her down to hell for it, but it's true. Chairman Cho was alive. Now he's dead. There's literally nothing she can do, or could've done, about it.

BEEP. Riyo's blue data pad receives a message. It's from the Speaker of the Assembly, and the message is fairly short.

They found you innocent. Thank you.

Riyo wants to hurl the data pad out the window. A closed one even, so that she'll have the satisfaction of breaking glass. She takes a deep breath to center herself. What's really wrong, Riyo? Can you use your big-girl words? She breathes and distances herself from her messy feelings. After a long, searching moment, she decides that she should feel like Bantha poodoo about the late Chairman, but she doesn't, and kind of feels bad about that instead.

Riyo sighs and feels a hundred pounds lighter. Maybe she'll actually eat that stew she cooked earlier.

DING DONG.

The doorbell rings, and Riyo panics for a second, thinking that the Trickster Goddess really has decided to finally come for her. A moment later, she decides that Gods are above such petty concerns like manners, which means that the person at her door is not going to kill her.

Better not answer the door anyway, just to be safe.

The doorbell rings again.

"Riyo?" Ahsoka's voice comes through the metal door. "I know you're in there. Let me in?"

She could do that. Riyo rolls off the couch and unlocks the door. It slides open, and Ahsoka envelops her in a tight hug. She hugs back and realizes that although Ahsoka's frame is slight, she's deceptively strong.

"Master Skywalker told me what happened," Ahsoka says. She's warm and solid around her, and Riyo doesn't want to let go, but she does so that she can let Ahsoka in.

"How do you feel?" Ahsoka asks.

"Better than I did five minutes ago," Riyo says. "Come on in. How'd you find me?"

"Usually I wouldn't pry, but I sensed something…off, about you through the Force," Ahsoka says. She pulls away and steps into the apartment. "Captain Sterno gave me your address. I wanna help, is that okay?"

"Yes," Riyo says. She leads the way to the couch and holds a blanket out to Ahsoka. "I'm still processing what's happened, and I could use a second opinion."

"What happened?" Ahsoka joins Riyo on the couch and pulls the blanket over her shoulders against the freezing air in the apartment. She tries not to stare at Riyo's left arm, which is covered in intricate yellow tattoos. Even the back of her hands are tattooed. Ahsoka wonders why she's never seen them before, but realizes that Riyo's always kept her arm and the backs of her hands covered while at the office.

Riyo tells Ahsoka everything. By the time she finishes up, Ahsoka's mouth is hanging open.

"…And the worst part is that I might feel relieved. Does that make me a terrible person?" Riyo can't look Ahsoka in the eye when she asks this. "Shouldn't I feel more strongly about this?"

Ahsoka scoots closer to take Riyo's hands in hers. "No. No, it doesn't. Riyo, it's okay! Think about it this way, what would've happened to the Pantoran people if Chairman Cho were alive?"

"We'd be pulled into a war. Many people would die." She pauses. "Is that how you justify death? One for many?"

"Many clone troopers die in battle," Ahsoka says. "So many brothers. I have to tell myself that they died for a good reason. That they didn't die in vain. And hey, it gets me to sleep at night."

Riyo wonders, again, how the Jedi can possibly justify sending children to fight in a war, but she doesn't say anything about that.

"To die for one's people is a great sacrifice." Riyo lowered the late Chairman's helmet onto the butt of the spear. "To live for one's people an even greater sacrifice. I choose to live for my people. What do you choose?"

The Talz Chieftain dwarfed Riyo by far. When he lifted his spear up high, her breath stuttered in her chest for a moment. It felt as if her nerves had shriveled and have retreated from her hands into her wrists.

This is probably it, Riyo thought.

How many moments has Ahsoka had like that? Then again, that might not be a fair comparison to make.

"Riyo?" Ahsoka asks. "Are you okay?"

"Have you ever thought that you were going to die?" Riyo asks. Ahsoka doesn't blink.

"No. In hindsight, I realize how I could've died, but when I'm in the middle of a fight, when I'm in the moment, I don't have thoughts like that at all. Do you wanna talk about it?"

"That makes sense. You can't afford to have thoughts like that in the middle of a fight." Riyo gives Ahsoka's hands one last squeeze before she pulls away. "Thank you, Ahsoka. I was going to have dinner. Will you join me?"

"Yeah!" Ahsoka moves to follow. "What are we having?"

"Nerf stew with potatoes."

"Yum! You cooked that?"

"How do you know a housekeeper didn't?" Riyo ladles some stew in a bowl and hands it to Ahsoka. "Many senators have housekeepers, right?"

"No offense, but this place doesn't look like a housekeeper works here." Ahsoka brings the bowl to her lips and takes a sip. Her eyes light up.

"Are you all right?" Riyo holds out a spoon for her.

"It's so good. How? I've known you for how long and I didn't know you could do this?"

Riyo laughs and picks up her own bowl. She blows on it to cool it off. "I had to learn very quickly when I was thirteen."

"Well, I can't cook," Ahsoka says. "Neither can Master Skywalker. Or Master Kenobi. You'd think one of us would step up while we're in the field, but no. And even at the Temple, it's no better. For some reason, the Council doesn't believe in spices."

"I'm glad you like it," Riyo says. "Do you want to learn?"

"Please? That'd be awesome."

"Of course." Riyo eats a spoonful and fails to keep herself from watching Ahsoka inhale the stew. She decides that she should cook more often.

Later, Riyo opens her traveling bag again and sees the stained blouse.

She throws it into the sink.

* * *

Note Bene: Dark Star Wars, show me the forbidden world building. You've probably noticed by now that I've taken extreme liberties with Pantoran culture. I hope it's plausible.

Thanks for all the feedback, you're all wonderful. And thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter.


	3. Wrecked

The last time Riyo was in a hospital voluntarily, her mother was alive. She hasn't thought of hospitals the same since, and avoids them so much that Magnus must drag her into one when something is wrong with her health. So when she steps through the front doors of the First Republic Hospital, it's with sinking trepidation. The hospital smells like stale Bacta and anesthetic, and it's incredibly busy. Medical personnel and droids help transfer patients between floors and rooms. Others distribute medicine. Because the hospital is so packed, the patients recovering from the Blue Shadow Virus are split up between rooms. Half of Ahsoka's room is curtained off, obscuring her roommate, but every now and then, an electronic sentence plays from behind it: "I am in pain."

Whenever that happens, a medical droid comes into the room carrying a syringe of morphine and an IV bag of Bacta. It disappears behind the curtain, and comes out a couple minutes later with an empty syringe and an empty Bacta pouch. Titon, who keeps watch from just inside the doorway, can't stop staring at the curtain. Riyo drops her bag on the floor and sinks into the visitor's chair beside Ahsoka's bed.

Ahsoka's still asleep. Her usual orange skin is streaked with sickly, bluish-black veins and there's an IV needle stuck in her arm. The IV line leads up to a Bacta bag that hangs from a rack off to the side.

Riyo's heart drops into her stomach at the sight. Ahsoka's hand is feverishly warm, and Riyo traces the thin bones in her fingers with her thumb and finds that her palm is roughened with calluses. Riyo leans back in her chair and closes her eyes. She concentrates on the steady beeps of the vitals sensor and tries not to think about worst case scenarios.

Ahsoka squeezes back. It's a weak squeeze, but it's there. Riyo opens her eyes and sees that Ahsoka's awake.

"Riyo," Ahsoka whispers. She gives her a small smile and Riyo can't help but smile back.

"They said you were well enough to get visitors," Riyo says. "So I got you something."

Riyo pulls a tupperware out from her bag while Ahsoka clumsily fiddles with the controls of the bed so that she can sit up. Riyo pauses.

"Can you eat solid food?" she asks. Ahsoka shrugs. She still looks exhausted.

"They've been feeding me some kind of protein mush in a tube. That's kind of solid, right?"

"Good enough. I cooked you some Bantha and gravy."

"Oh Force! Thank you." Ahsoka reaches out and takes a fork that Riyo holds out for her, only to fumble and drop it onto the bed. She tries to pick it up again, but drops it into her lap. The two girls stare at it.

"Protein mush from a tube," Riyo repeats.

"Yeah."

"A tube that doesn't require much grip strength."

"Yeah," Ahsoka says. "Or finger articulation. Or movement in general. I still can't lift my hands above my head."

Riyo gives Ahsoka an apologetic look, then takes up the fork. "Say 'ah.'"

"No way!" The stripes on Ahsoka's montrals and lekku darken into a deep blue and she covers her face in her hands. "Riyo, don't make me do that!"

Riyo giggles. "Do you want to eat real food or not?"

"I do! But…" Ahsoka peeks at Riyo through a gap in her fingers. Then she glances past Riyo at Titon.

"Oh," Riyo says. "Titon?"

"Huh?" Titon's transfixed by the curtain.

CLICK. "I am in pain," comes from behind the curtain again.

"Titon," Riyo says, more firmly this time.

"Oh! Yes, Senator?"

"Can you keep watch from out in the hallway?"

"Of course," Titon mutters. Just like that, he's gone, as if he can't leave the room fast enough.

Riyo turns back to Ahsoka. "Are you going to open up, or will I have to make speeder noises?"

Ahsoka groans.

"Ahsoka! I'm only teasing." Riyo's voice softens. "Let me take care of you."

"…Okay." Ahsoka lowers her hands. "But only because I don't want the food to get cold."

"Ah." Riyo stabs a piece of meat and holds it out for Ahsoka.

"Ah," Ahsoka says. The meat is gone with a flash of pointy teeth. Riyo slowly lowers the fork.

"May I ask you something? At the risk of sounding incredibly ignorant?"

"Mm-hmm?"

"Are Togruta teeth really venomous?"

Ahsoka quirks an eyebrow marking up and stares. To her credit, however, Riyo powers through her discomfort to stare back.

"You don't have to answer that," Riyo finally says, but Ahsoka shakes her head.

"I just didn't expect it, that's all." Ahsoka wipes her mouth on a napkin. "No, we're not venomous. Don't tell anyone though. It comes in handy when people think that we are. My turn. Ah."

"Your turn?" Riyo gives Ahsoka another piece of meat. "What do you mean?"

"Hmm. You asked me something, now I get to ask you something."

"That's fair."

"What do your tattoos mean? The ones on your arm and hands?"

Riyo's mouth drops in surprise. "That is a good question."

"I saw them a couple months ago, but I never asked about them. Ah."

"It's a full sleeve. A lot of Pantorans have tattoos, but we cover them up when we want to appear professional. Facial tattoos are like clan markers, but the ones on our arms, they're family history." Riyo sets the tupperware aside, then unclasps the sleeves of her jacket. She shrugs it off.

Ahsoka realizes that she's staring, and turns away for a moment. When she looks back, Riyo's undoing her shirt sleeves, and for a thrilling moment, Ahsoka thinks that she's going to take off her shirt too and wonders what the hell is wrong with herself. But Riyo, unaware of Ahsoka's predicament, doesn't take off her shirt; she only rolls her sleeves up and points to a design on the outside of her left forearm.

"These two, for example, represent mountains and grain. My ancestors on my mother's side were farmers, they helped create the ancient steppe farms in the mountains. It goes all the way up," here Riyo traces the design up over her sleeve to her shoulder, "to the moon, because the Moon Goddess created everything."

"What about your father?" Ahsoka asks. "Is he in there too?"

Riyo brings her forearms together. Compared to her left arm, the right is a smooth, even blue. "Pantorans usually have two sleeves: left for their mother, right for their father. But there's no way I'm putting any mark from that man on my body."

"What about the ones on your hands?" Ahsoka asks. Riyo places her hands on the bed between them so that they can both see. Both hands have the same design.

"These are personalized. They represent my career, who I am as a person. A Pantoran tattooist can tell you exactly who that person is from one glance of their tattoos, because they tell their story."

"Ah." Ahsoka imagines what the rest of Riyo's tattoos look like and wonders where they could be on her body. Just as quickly as the images pop into her mind, Ahsoka banishes them.

CLICK. "I am in pain," comes from behind the curtain.

* * *

There is a wide courtyard on the roof of the Jedi Temple and in the courtyard is an ancient tree planted in one end, which seems to preside over the entire space as if a benevolent god. The majority of the courtyard is divided up into smaller areas by long planters and benches, making it a perfect place for Jedi of all ages to spar with each other. Ahsoka and Plo Koon bring up two cushions and a Holochess board and play a couple games in the fading sunlight. A few younglings gather around.

"There, Padawan Tano." A six year-old wriggles her way onto Ahsoka's lap and points at a particular space. "Move there."

"I like your mask, Master Koon."

"Is your headband made of teeth?"

They're cute. Honest. But Plo gives Ahsoka a helpless look that makes her giggle. Give Plo one afternoon with one youngling, and he'll be fine, but it's been years since he's taken charge of a creche, or even taught a youngling class.

"Younglings," Ahsoka says once she's gotten herself under control, "have you heard the story of the Ancient Tree?"

"The Tree?" The younglings grow still to listen to her talk.

"It's a wise thing that has seen many things across the eons: the creation of systems, ancient battles between Jedi and Sith, and more. They say that if you meditate under it, it will tell you what it's seen."

"What?"

"Cool!"

The younglings run off towards the other end of the courtyard. Ahsoka giggles again then turns back to Plo, who hums with appreciation.

"You're welcome, Master Koon."

The ground shakes under them, throwing them from their seats. The Holochess board tips over and crashes onto its side. Ahsoka and Plo share a look of concern.

"What was that?" Ahsoka picks herself off the ground and runs to the side of the courtyard, where other Jedi gather.

"It's coming from the Senate District!" an older youngling points to the horizon, where thick plumes of black smoke rise into the air.

"It must be that Zillo Beast they brought in today," a knight says. "Remember? It was all over HNN."

Ahsoka gasps. Anakin is in the Senate District, keeping Padmé company while she works late hours. Ahsoka tries calling his comlink, but doesn't get an answer. She tries again. Nothing.

Ahsoka huffs, but doesn't give up. She takes a deep breath, closes her eyes, and drops into a kneeling position. In her mind, she grabs one end of the Force Bond she shares with Anakin and traces it across the city until she receives feelings that aren't hers. There are traces of stress, but also an overwhelming sense of calm. Amusement, strong and intentional, shoots back into her through the bond.

Don't worry Snips, Anakin seems to think at her. I got this.

He also flashes images of Padmé and the Chancellor, confirming their safety.

Ahsoka sighs and drops the bond, content. This peace lasts only for a moment before she's gripped with panic again.

"Riyo!" Ahsoka fumbles with her comlink again to call her. It doesn't even go through and she ends the call, disgusted. Everyone must be trying to com everyone else at the same time, jamming the comlink towers.

"'Soka?" Plo touches Ahsoka's shoulder. "We must have faith. Mace and Anakin will handle the situation."

"Of course, but it's not them that I'm worried about," Ahsoka says. Senators who are a part of the same camp tend to keep to the same schedule, so if Padmé is working late tonight, then so is Riyo. And yeah, Magnus and Titon are capable guards, but Ahsoka guesses that they probably didn't think that they'd have to protect Riyo from a Zillo Beast. Ahsoka sinks herself into meditation once again.

There are billions of people on Coruscant and billions of non-sentient creatures. All of them sing out through the Force. Ahsoka concentrates on the lilt of Riyo's voice, the way her eyebrows crinkle with complex thought, and rifles through the Force as quickly as she can, looking, looking, looking for Riyo.

Ahsoka finds her alive in one of the Senate bunkers. Before she can slump in relief, however, she brushes up against her, which—really—is something only an unpracticed youngling would do. Ahsoka's world explodes in phantom sensations.

The floor trembles underneath her with every step the Zillo Beast takes. Plaster dust rains down on her head from the ceiling. The Zillo Beast's roars vibrate right through her chest.

Ahsoka realizes that Riyo would like very much to be…not there, thank you very much. But then Ahsoka feels a warm, solid presence sitting beside her.

Captain Sterno, she realizes, and he's a bastion of calm compared to RIyo. If he's not worried about the Zillo Beast, then that's enough. Satisfied, Ahsoka pulls away. She doesn't ask herself why she found Riyo so quickly.

* * *

Riyo drags her hands down her face and takes a deep breath. Calm. Peace. Senators aren't supposed to lose their tempers. She's been trying to beef up her security, but the Pantoran Assembly won't increase the budget for another guard, so she must sign up for Senatorial guards. The problem is that because of the Zillo Beast, every other senator has also requested extra guards. Security has no more guards to assign, so they put her name down on a waiting list.

A waiting list is not going to keep her safe. She's messaged Security multiple times, but every reply has been the same: we're working on it. So while they work on that, Riyo's been working from her home office on Pantora, where it's safer. Even though she must bus her own coffee mugs, she considers it a good enough trade off, because whenever she needs to attend a hologram meeting, she puts on one of her suit jackets, and when the meeting is over, she gets to take it off and lounge in pajama bottoms and a tank top.

The hologram comlink on her desk chimes, and Riyo answers it. It's Magnus, in a frayed henley shirt. Traces of his full chest tattoo peek out over the collar of his shirt.

"Senator Chuchi," he says.

"Yes, Captain?"

"We'll just have to make do with what we have."

Riyo grimaces. Magnus's brows knit together.

"Your safety is my job, not yours. Please let me handle it."

"Captain…"

"No, Senator. You cannot continue to play hooky from the Senate. People depend on you. Trust me to keep you safe. I will be enough."

Riyo nods, and Magnus gives her something that might be called a smile before he ends the call. She wonders if she can request a Jedi detail like how Padmé has been doing lately. She always seems to get Anakin Skywalker as her assigned guard, and what are the odds of that? She chuckles.

BEEP BEEP. The hologram comlink chimes again and Riyo answers it. It's Ahsoka.

"Hey you," Ahsoka says.

"Hello yourself," Riyo says. "Congratulations on your victory in Geonosis."

"Hah! Yeah, that was actually kinda fun. Whoops!" Ahsoka's image wavers for a second. Someone else giggles offscreen.

"Ahsoka, get down from there, you'll hurt yourself!"

"Aww, come on! Jedi aren't clumsy."

"Sober Jedi aren't clumsy," Riyo says. "Go home, Ahsoka, you're drunk. Who's with you?"

"Come here. Come here!" Ahsoka beckons to the mystery girl, then reaches out and pulls her close so that the hologram comlink will pick them both up.

"This is Senator Riyo Chuchi. Introduce yourself" Ahsoka says. The mystery girl, a Mirialan around Riyo's age, giggles as she stumbles against Ahsoka and gives Riyo a shy curtsy.

"Hello, Senator," the girl says. "I'm…uhm…padawan learner Barriss Offee at your service."

"Force, you're too polite," Ahsoka says.

"Hello, Master Jedi." Riyo gives her a warm smile. "And please, call me Riyo. A friend of Ahsoka's is a friend of mine."

"Thank you, Riyo," Barriss says. "Please feel free to call me 'Barriss' as well."

"How many shots are you giving her, Ahsoka?"

"We just had a thank-Force-we're-alive drink," Ahsoka says. "Just one."

"Lies."

"Okay, fine uh…more than one." Ahsoka rolls her eyes, then her smirk softens into a bittersweet smile. "When are you coming back? I miss you."

Something jumps in Riyo's chest. Why did she leave Coruscant in the first place?

"Soon," she says. She wonders how quickly she can cross half the galaxy.

* * *

Ahsoka has her lightsaber at Sib Canay's throat when the corridor, already littered with dismembered droids, quickly fills up with Neimoidian guards who are ready to fight. There's too many of them, and the corridor is too contained for Ahsoka's fighting style. She deactivates her lightsaber with a disappointed click of her tongue.

Riyo comes out of the prison cell into the corridor behind her, followed by Chairman Papanoida's daughter, Chi Eekway. Another Trade Federation official sweeps into the corridor behind the guards.

"Thank you, Ahsoka," Riyo whispers as she pushes past her to meet the official head on. "Leave the rest to me."

She proceeds to give the official the most vicious dressing down that Ahsoka's ever heard.

Later, aboard the Jedi Shuttle, Chi Eekway excuses herself to comlink her father, leaving Ahsoka and Riyo to themselves in the cockpit.

"Can I see your shoe?" Ahsoka asks.

"What?" Riyo asks.

"Let me see your shoe."

"Why?"

"Because I've never seen anyone put their foot that far up a guy's butt."

"Ahsoka!" Riyo bursts into laughter and Ahsoka's heart does acrobatics in her chest. "I did, didn't I?"

"I didn't know you could do that!"

"Well, you were quite impressive yourself."

"Really?" Ahsoka grins. They're cut off when Chi Eekway emerges from the cockpit of the ship.

"My father wants to invite you both to dinner," she says.

Chairman Papanoida, before he was Chairman, was an entertainment baron, and he got his start writing several plays that were received with great praise and acclaim. His earliest works are easily adapted by smaller troupes, and thus are widely studied by Pantoran academies. When the Papanoida family, Riyo, and Ahsoka sit down for dinner that evening, the topic inevitably turns to these plays.

"Do they show them here on Coruscant too, Master Jedi?" Papanoida asks halfway into the meal.

"They do, Chairman," Ahsoka says, surprised at how much she's enjoying herself. She's eating some kind of sour reindeer soup and she gets to sit next to Riyo during a meal for once, instead of across from her.

"My favorite one—I forget the title—but it's about two pairs of twins who get mixed up with each other," Ahsoka says.

"I'm quite fond of that one," Papanoida says. "I rarely get time to finish anything these days; I'm in the market for a collaborator. What do you say, Senator? Are you open to trying your hand at fiction?"

Riyo's ears turn indigo. "Chairman, please. I'm more suited to treatises."

"You do yourself a great disservice! Your essays are full of passion."

Ion, Papanoida's son, nods in agreement. "How else could you move the people to action so often? And your letters to your cousin were exquisite."

Riyo gives a forced smile. "Thank you."

Ahsoka tries to distract them. "What's your favorite play, Chairman? Out of all the plays you've written? There must be one."

"That's a difficult question, Master Jedi!" Papanoida gives a gruff chuckle, but launches into a spiel about his work nonetheless. While he talks, Riyo gives Ahsoka a grateful smile.

* * *

One day, Riyo gets a message on her black data pad from Senator Bail Organa. It's about a meeting between all the opponents of the Enhanced Privacy Invasion Bill that's to take place in one of the atriums of the Senate Office Building late that morning. Riyo releases her aides and her guards for an early lunch before walking into the atrium, but then Cad Bane swaggers into the room and fires his blaster into the air, and his posse surrounds them. He shoots Senator Philo in the back and a pit of fear opens in Riyo's gut. After an emotional rollercoaster during which Anakin reveals his presence in the building, is captured, but then frees all the hostages by cutting the floor out from under them, Riyo dusts herself off and limps out of the atrium.

The entire building is still on lockdown, so no one else can come in, and Riyo doesn't meet anyone else on her way to her office. When she gets to her office, she sinks into her chair and rifles through her desk drawers for the back-up comlink that Magnus set up for her just in case.

It's full of missed calls and messages. Riyo calls Magnus, and he picks up right away.

"Senator Chuchi!" Magnus bellows. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, Captain," Riyo says. She tells him about Anakin's daring rescue as she collects her belongings and leaves the office. There's no way she wants to stay here for the rest of the day.

"I should have been there."

"This was not your fault. Perhaps if I had a blaster, I might have been able to do something."

"I'll have the derringer ready for you tomorrow."

The call ends. Riyo slips the comlink into her pocket and opens a door. She almost runs into someone on the other side.

"Riyo!" Ahsoka gives her a hug. "You're okay!"

"Ahsoka!" Riyo drops her bag on the floor to hug her back. "How did you get in here?"

"The building's no longer on lock down," Ahsoka picks up Riyo's bag and hands it back to her. "So here I am! Where you off to now?"

"Honestly, I'm ready to get drunk," Riyo says. Ahsoka whoops and takes her arm. "Gods, Senator Philo is dead, and I just had lunch with him last week."

Ahsoka gives her an apologetic look. "We'll pour one out for him." She looks down. "You're limping."

"Yes, I landed funny when your master dropped us fifteen feet without warning." Riyo pauses, then says, "don't tell Magnus."

"Okay, but he's gonna notice anyway."

"Don't say that! Senator Amidala and your master are very close."

Ahsoka snorts at the clumsy change of subject. "They are."

Riyo hesitates, unsure of how to say the next bit. "I think I heard something that I wasn't supposed to hear."

"What?"

"Padmé had your master's lightsaber. She said afterwards that she found it, but no. I don't think that's what happened."

Ahsoka squints at her. "But a Jedi's lightsaber is their life! Why would Padmé have it? Why would Anakin give it to her?"

"Why indeed." Riyo and Ahsoka board a shuttle and hold onto the dangling handles as it takes off. "It's none of my business. Forget I said anything."

"Too late," Ahsoka murmurs, lost in thought. "It's not just you, I've noticed things about them too."

"Whatever you find out, you don't have to tell me," Riyo says. "That way I can have deniability."

Riyo gazes out of the shuttle window and loses herself in the vivid colors of the sky. Ten minutes ago, she had the business end of a blaster stuck in her face. Now, she watches sunlight glint off of the glass and metal of Coruscant's skyscrapers. The streams of speeders cross in an intricate net over the city. Even the steady throb of pain and blood in her sprained ankle reminds her: she's alive.

She's alive.

* * *

On the holoscreen, the music swells to a forte as one of the characters, a female Togruta, presents her lover with a knife.

"Will you marry me?"

But her lover backs away.

"I can't! I'm sorry!" The music swells again in minor key as the lover runs off, leaving the Togruta by herself, heartbroken. Ahsoka shrieks with schadenfreude delight and pulls a blanket over her face to hide her smile. "Toothless! She's gonna go Akul hunting now, watch."

"'Toothless?'" Riyo asks. "What does that mean?"

She and Ahsoka are sitting on the couch in Riyo's apartment, watching a hologram show about an ancient warrior princess and a poet who travel around an ancient planet. Ahsoka's wrapped in a blanket like she's a burrito and Riyo's lounging in sleep shorts and t-shirt.

"Ah hmm," Ahsoka hesitates as she tries to find the right words to explain. "To Togruta, two things matter: your physical prowess and the head. The elders believe that energies from the universe flow into us through the montrals, and down into the head and into the lekku."

"Is that why it's taboo to touch a Togruta's montrals and lekku?" Riyo asks.

"Yeah! It's pretty intimate stuff. Anyways, that's also the reason why we have Akul tooth headdresses instead of Akul tooth belts, or Akul tooth bracelets; powerful items should be worn on the most powerful parts of the body. Since we go to hell and back for our headdresses, the only time we'd ever permanently take them off is to make a knife."

Riyo gasps. "You make the knives out of the Akul teeth? From your own headdresses?"

"Yup."

Riyo's silent for a couple moments. "So when the knife was rejected…."

"You can't unmake a knife, so now she's 'toothless,' poor thing."

The two of them return their attention to the holoscreen, which shows the hapless Togruta crying silent tears as she makes a spear. When it cuts to commercial, Ahsoka undoes Riyo's world with only four words: "I met a boy."

Riyo says nothing, believing herself to have misheard.

"Last week," Ahsoka continues, "when I went with Padmé to visit the Separatists."

"Is that so?" Riyo gets a bad feeling in her gut, but ignores it for now. "Who is he?"

Ahsoka giggles, actually giggles, and Riyo pastes a smile on her face and tries to ignore how her heart plummets into her stomach.

"Lux Bonteri. His mom's a senator for the Separatists and yeah, I know we're supposed to be fighting them, but Lux is pretty cool."

"Does that mean he's handsome?"

"You could describe him that way."

"Fantastic." That's all Riyo manages to say. Isn't she supposed to be happy for her friend? Ahsoka, unaware of Riyo's turmoil, presses on.

"I mean, I know Jedi aren't supposed to have attachments, so there's no way it's ever gonna fly, but I can still admire him from afar, right?" Ahsoka glances at Riyo and does a double take. "Are you okay?"

Riyo shakes her head. "I think I ate something bad earlier."

"No, that's not it. It's something else." Ahsoka squints and scoots closer to get a better look at her. The edge of the blanket slips from her montrals and pools around her shoulders.

"You are not using the Force on me." Riyo's pulse spikes in warning in her ears. "Ahsoka, please. Not now."

"Yeah fine, but it's not like I can just turn it off. I already know it's something big. Let me help!"

Riyo might not know what's going on with herself, but she knows that whatever it is will make her implode, and that can't happen in front of Ahsoka.

"I don't think it's something you can swing a lightsaber at," Riyo says.

"Not with that attitude, it isn't."

"I suppose not." Riyo gives Ahsoka an apologetic smile. "It's still not one of those problems."

"Wanna talk about it?"

"Perhaps not now. It'll keep, Ahsoka."

"I guess," Ahsoka says, still not convinced. The both of them watch the rest of the hologram show, but are no longer interested in it. Ahsoka leaves soon after that, after one last lingering hug and also only after Riyo has promised to call her if there's anything she can do to help. After sending Ahsoka off, Riyo stands in one spot for a long moment, trying to keep herself together. She calls Magnus on the hologram comlink.

When it rings, Riyo panics and checks the time, thinking that she's called him late at night, but it's still early in the evening. Magnus picks up.

"Senator Chuchi?" he asks. "Did you need something?"

Unable to keep her composure any longer, Riyo lets her shoulders slump and grits her teeth. "Captain. Help."

After confirming that no, Riyo isn't in immediate physical danger, and that yes, she does need help, Magnus swings by to pick her up in a speeder. She pulls on a hooded jacket and a pair of soft boots before heading out the door to meet him.

"Senator," Magnus says when Riyo slides into the passenger seat.

"Captain," Riyo tries to say. Her voice catches in her throat. Magnus's eyebrows knit together in concern.

"What's wrong?"

Riyo sinks down in her seat and hugs herself. "Please don't laugh. It sounds stupid."

"I don't believe you're capable of stupid, Senator."

There's a moment of silence that's filled with the whoosh of the wind against their ears and the hum of the other speeders around them. Riyo sighs and tells him what's happened. While she talks, Magnus keeps flying. Riyo doesn't ask where they're headed, and Magnus doesn't tell her. When she's done, the silence comes back around them.

"I forget how old you are sometimes, Senator," he says.

"Magnus," Riyo gives him a pleading look. "I don't need help from a bodyguard right now."

"Riyo then," he says, as if testing the name. It comes out with a sort of tenderness that she's never heard from him before. "Are you worried that Padawan Tano will stop being your friend over this boy?"

"No." The answer tumbles out of Riyo's mouth before she can stop it, but the more she thinks about it, the more she realizes that it's true. "She's a Jedi, and therefore married to her work. A boy's not going to change that, she said so herself."

"I see," Magnus says. "And you have yet to succumb to Titon's charm."

The bridge of Riyo's nose wrinkles in disgust and Magnus gives her a rare smile.

"I don't see what Titon has to do with any of this," Riyo says.

"Indeed. Do you want to hear my diagnosis?"

"Please."

"It sounds like you're jealous."

"How can I be jealous of Ahsoka?"

It must be one of those nights, because Magnus chuckles and says, "not jealous of Padawan Tano, but of the boy she's in love with."

"But that would mean…." The gears in Riyo's head grind to a halt. In the past, when she's reached this point, her mind would quickly shift into reverse, keeping her away from that line of thought. This time, however, her mind powers through it, and every barrier that she has subconsciously put up between herself and Ahsoka comes crashing down. Suddenly, Ahsoka isn't just Ahsoka-the-really-good-friend-who's-kickass-with-a-lightsaber, but Ahsoka, whose eyes light up when she hears a good joke, whose sharp teeth fit in her warm smile, and who stands close, but not close enough.

Riyo's mind shifts into overdrive. All these little details that she's noticed about Ahsoka before, but has dismissed, come back with a vengeance. The way her muscles shift in her back, the curve of her lekku as they drape over her shoulders, all of it endearing and beautiful and just beyond her reach. Riyo sinks deeper in her seat and buries her face in her hands. She groans.

"Riyo?" Magnus asks. Riyo drops her hands and sighs.

"I can't believe I…I have feelings for Ahsoka. And she…. " Riyo's wonder sours into mortification. "I've become that one woman in Papanoida's play. The one who falls in love with her best friend. A walking cliché."

"The Trickster God does seem to be funning with you," Magnus says. "What will you do?"

"I could tell Ahsoka, but she can't return my feelings because she's a Jedi, so that's a guaranteed rejection."

"She could return your affections."

"That doesn't mean she would act on them. She would still say 'no' either way. If I tell her anyway, I risk the destruction of our friendship."

"You should give your friendship more credit than that, Riyo."

"What am I going to say? 'Hi, I like you, so please disregard Jedi teachings so that we can go see a holomovie together?' Relationships like the one I might want with Ahsoka are forbidden to Jedi. How can I ask her to give up the only lifestyle that she's ever known just for me?" Riyo's chest tightens painfully and she turns away.

"No, we're friends, so we'll stay friends. I'll just have to carry on as if nothing's changed between us. Ahsoka doesn't owe me anything, and I won't ask something from her that she can't give."

Riyo stews in her misery for a few long moments before Magnus glances at her with pity and some sympathy.

"Shall we get ice cream?"

"Yes, please."

In the Jedi temple, while she meditates, Ahsoka feels a shift. It's subtle, but it's wondrous and terrible at the same time. She's doesn't know what it is, and after letting it wash over her for a moment, she resolves to let it be. Whatever it is, it isn't hurting anyone.

Ahsoka forgets about it the next day.

* * *

Note Bene: Christ, Riyo. If you're so determined to be a martyr, then you can just sulk on that cross. Let the pining begin. Are you having fun? I'm having so much fun. We've reached high levels of gay in this chapter.

I didn't want to include Lux Bonteri in this fic. He's just…so…boring? But Ahsoka did have feelings for him in the show, so I guess that makes him relevant. Fucking mayonnaise motherfucker. No, I'm not bitter. Don't look at me.

Is reindeer sinigang a thing? I wanna try it. It probably tastes like beef sinigang tho.

Thanks for reading! You're all such lovely people and I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please let me know what you think about it.


	4. Gossip, Gossip, Just Stop It

_Everybody knows I'm a motha-fuckin' monster!_

* * *

Onaconda Farr is dead. The entire Senate office building has been evacuated to make way for the authorities to investigate. Riyo finds herself on the steps of the building with a growing crowd of press and curious passerby. She sends her aides home for the rest of the day, but waits around for Padmé to emerge.

Ever since Riyo's published her essay against the Enhanced Security Bill, Padmé's has unofficially set herself up as her mentor. Padmé's taught her the open secrets about their fellow senators and the way things work, the tenuous nets of alliances, and other things that she wouldn't usually learn without years of experience. It's a stark difference in attitude compared to the other senators, especially those from core-world systems, who consider her some provincial politician from some backwater system and ignore her at best, and are patronizing at worst.

The same core-system senators consider Naboo a backwater system too, but have begrudgingly learned not to underestimate Padmé. Riyo suspects that Padmé seeks to groom her into having the same reputation, and she finds that she doesn't really mind. They tend to vote the same way anyway, and Riyo's not about to turn away _Padmé Amidala_.

Riyo met Onaconda Farr through Padmé. He was a good person, and anyone could pick up on how close he and Padmé were. Padmé even considered him an uncle of sorts. And now he's dead.

Sure, Padmé's inner circle will support her, but Riyo doesn't want to just abandon her to the authorities. It doesn't seem right after all that Padmé's done for her. And she's not the only politician to linger. Duchess Satine of Mandalore is only ten feet away, and she's in the middle of a heated discussion with Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi. They've been spending a lot of time together lately, not unlike Padmé and Anakin. Are all Republic politicians paired up with Jedi?

Riyo thinks about Ahsoka and reminds herself not to throw stones. Besides, the company her fellow senators choose to keep when away from the office isn't any of her business. Riyo averts her gaze and sees Ahsoka and Anakin Skywalker standing together on the other end of the steps.

Speak of the Trickster and They shall appear.

Ahsoka spots her first. "Riyo!" she says. "You're here!"

"Ahsoka," Riyo says. She pushes through the crowd and meets her halfway. "What are you doing here?"

"The murder's all over HNN," Ahsoka says. "Master Skywalker wanted to be here for Padmé."

"Senator," Anakin says. He looms over the two of them.

"Hello, Master Jedi." Riyo shakes his hand and notices it's mechanic. "It's nice to see you again. Ahsoka talks about you all the time."

"Does she?" Anakin looks at Ahsoka, who shrugs. "Padmé talks about you."

Uh she what?

Anakin chuckles and Riyo blinks curiously up at him.

"Did I say that aloud?"

"No. I'm sorry, Senator. It kind of jumped out at me." Anakin says.

"Oh." Riyo straightens up in an attempt to salvage some dignity and tries to ignore Ahsoka, who looks like she might explode from trying to keep her laughter in.

"I didn't know she talked about me," Riyo says. "Does she say good things?"

"Good things," Anakin says. "Are you here for Padmé too?"

"Yes. I know what it's like to lose a parental figure."

"Mm," Anakin gives a vague grunt. "It's not a good feeling."

Riyo gives Anakin a searching look and sees a familiar grief mirrored in his blue eyes.

"My condolences, Master Jedi."

It's Anakin's turn to watch Riyo closely. "Thank you. It happened a long time ago though."

"The grief never really goes away," Riyo says, "it only become easier to deal with. I wrote about my anguish in letters to my cousin for a while, before he decided to publish them behind my back."

"Your father wasn't available to help you through this?"

"My father walked out on us when I was ten. He's not the most upstanding fellow."

"…We have a lot in common, Senator."

"Do we, Master Jedi?" Riyo gives him a skeptical side-eye. "No offense, but that's rather unfortunate."

Anakin laughs and Riyo's side-eye turns into a small smile. They fall into an easy, companionable silence. Ahsoka looks back and forth between them in amazement.

* * *

Being possessed by the Son feels cold. Incredibly cold, like Ahsoka's soul will catch frostbite cold. The Dark Side of the Force pulses through her veins like diseased rot. It's greasy and oily and somehow she doesn't mind. Who cares about all that when she has access to so much _raw power?_ It makes her nerves sing. Everything smells better, looks better. And oh Force, she could do anything with this power. She could take what she wants, be who she wants, do whatever she wants. And to hell with whoever says 'no.'

Suddenly, Ahsoka understands why Asajj Ventress is the way she is and somehow, this bit of empathy is far more offensive to her than actually being possessed by the Dark Side.

There is a tiny part of her that's still her, and is reduced to watching herself act this way in some sort of disassociating fit. It's relieved when the Son finally ends it.

In the half minute before Anakin brings her back, while Ahsoka is disembodied, she brushes up against the Force and It blasts the Dark Side out of her like a compressed air hose does grit. Everything is color and sound and all that ever was, is, and will be, fills her up. If Ahsoka still had a brain it would explode. If she still had a physical body it would break. It's too much, and when she's sucked back into her body, she loses it all in favor of the feeling of the beating heart in her chest and the firing of her nerves. She loses the color of the Force in favor of the light streaming in through actual eyes and the disembodied experience fades into a dull memory.

Anakin and Obi-Wan don't talk about their time on Mortis. They don't talk about Ahsoka's death and resurrection, and seem content to just forget about all of it. Ahsoka can't really do the same. She's said terrible things while possessed, and yeah, sure, she was _possessed_ , but it didn't mean that everything she said was a lie. How can they just move on like nothing happened?

But they do, leaving Ahsoka to put herself back together. Being possessed by the Son did a number on her and being resurrected by the Daughter didn't help her either. Her body feels scoured raw in some places, cooked in others. She needs to rest.

Ahsoka finds herself standing in front of the Ancient Tree in the Jedi courtyard. The more she watches the Tree, the more she feels like it watches her back. It's the closest thing she's found so far to swirling around in the Force, so she sits down at the foot of the Tree, closes her eyes, and meditates. The Tree seems to reach out to her, spreading the Force over her like a fine blanket. The decay reverses, and the burns ease. Ahsoka's skin becomes hers again, and she takes stock of what else needs mending.

The Force bond that she shares with Anakin still glows bright in her mind, healthy and robust. She doesn't want to bother him right now, so she doesn't tug on it. There are also thinner Force bonds that she shares with Obi-Wan and Plo, who she considers uncles of some kind, and Barriss, who is a good friend. While she doesn't have Force bonds with Force non-sensitive people, like Rex and Riyo, she can still reach out and find them quickly. She reaches out to them now, not to spy, but just to make sure she can still find them.

Rex is with his brothers at 79's, the clone bar. Ahsoka gets vague impressions of billiard balls cracking against each other and a comfortable buzz before she pulls away.

Riyo is curled up on the couch in her apartment, reading one of Chairman Papanoida's plays on her personal data pad. There's something different about her. The shift that Ahsoka sensed a couple months ago, this must be it. New colors swirl lazily in Riyo; they're bright and beautiful and warm. Ahsoka, mesmerized, drifts closer. Before she can stop herself, she brushes against her and is overcome by tender feelings of fondness. Overcome by Riyo's feelings for her.

Ahsoka gasps and pulls away as if she's touched a hot stove. _This_ was what the discrepancy in the Force was? It explains why it's only affected Ahsoka and no one else. She drops out of her meditation and marvels, trying to comprehend how in the universe that she's been able to inspire such feelings in another person. It's kind of nice. Her heart flutters and she must remind herself to take deep, calming breaths.

If Ahsoka's right, this means that Riyo's felt strongly about her for a while now and hasn't told her, so Riyo's probably been trying to keep it a secret. Oops. Guilt, forbidding and sickly, sinks into Ahsoka's chest.

But what's done is done. What should she do now that she knows?

A voice inside her head, one that sounds a lot like R7 if he spoke Galactic Basic, tells her that she could turn Riyo down; she _is_ a Jedi after all. But that sounds like a total cop-out. If Ahsoka's going to turn Riyo down, she's not going to cite the Jedi Code at her.

The R7 voice says that she can if she chickens out, but Ahsoka bristles like a Loth-cat at the mere suggestion of any cowardice. Riyo's a good person, and she deserves better than that, so Ahsoka will just turn Riyo down because she doesn't feel the same way.

The R7 voice scoffs. Really? She doesn't feel the same way?

Ahsoka's mind blanks, unwilling to answer that question, simple as it may be. Riyo is a friend. A good friend. A close friend. If she hasn't told Ahsoka about her feelings, then that must mean that she either doesn't know about them, or she isn't planning on ever telling Ahsoka about them.

Ahsoka isn't about to confront Riyo about feelings that she isn't even aware of. That's just messed up. She's also not about to confront Riyo if she's not ever going to bring up her feelings. And if Riyo never brings it up, then Ahsoka never has to figure out how she feels either. Ahsoka can put the whole issue away in the back of her mind, and not think about it ever again. It doesn't occur to her that in doing this, she's actually running away from the problem.

Ahsoka gasps in realization and groans. Riyo's felt this way about her the entire time and like an idiot, Ahsoka's been talking to her about _Lux Bonteri_. Force, no wonder Riyo's been cranky lately.

* * *

Riyo, a single woman in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a spouse. At least, that's what all the Pantoran holonet gossip channels have been saying lately. Riyo is twenty-one years-old now, the Pantoran age of majority, and speculating on her love life is all the rage in her home system. Riyo's desk is littered with invitations to Pantoran balls and galas, where she would get to know a lot of other single people her age, but she can't even go to most of them, because of her job. Not like there's a respite from this business at work. Vigo drops new invitations on her desk with a knowing smirk almost every day and every time they do, Magnus struggles to keep the corners of his mouth from twitching up.

A week into this ordeal, Titon broke and requested a sabbatical from work to go home to Pantora. It's a good thing that Riyo's not into gambling. If she were, she'd owe Ahsoka credits.

The hologram comlink on Riyo's desk chimes, and she answers it.

 _"Cousin Riyo!"_ the thin, smug face of Kaito Chuchi appears and Riyo resists the urge to roll her eyes. _"How are you?"_

"Cousin Kaito," Riyo says in a measured tone. "Your call couldn't wait until after working hours?"

Kaito rolls his eyes. _"If I must suffer your wrath in order to distract you from your political machinations, then it will be well worth it."_ He holds up a thick stack of data cards. _"People have been sending you proposals. And not the business kind either."_

"No."

 _"They're not just men, cousin."_ Kaito lowers the stack and rifles through them off-screen. _"There are women too. Whatever it is you're into, really. They're all in here."_

"The answer's still no, Kaito."

 _"Have your heart set on spinsterhood then? Grandmother won't like that."_

"The day Grandmother stops going through men like tissues is the day I'll consider her feelings in this matter. Are we finished?"

 _"Ah-ah,"_ Kaito says. _"I'm not writing the declination letters for all these. That task must fall to you."_

"Very well," Riyo says. "Forward them to me."

 _"Done and done!"_ Kaito gives her a dismissive wave. _"Goodbye, cousin!"_

"Goodbye." Riyo presses the end call button with more force than she should. She swipes her arm across her desk to clear a space so that she can rest her forehead upon the cool wood.

"Ugh."

BEEP BEEP. Riyo's hologram comlink chimes again. She sits up straight, fixes her hair and answers it. Chairman Papanoida appears, looking very regal in his finery.

 _"Senator Chuchi,"_ he says.

"Chairman!" Riyo's caught completely off guard. "Hello."

Papanoida frowns and peers at her from over his spectacles before taking them off. _"You forgot I was calling today."_

"No! No. Yes, I did. My apologies, Chairman."

 _"To be fair, you've been under a lot of pressure as of late."_ Papanoida picks up a flimsimag and puts his spectacles on again to read from it. _"Number seven on the list of Pantora's most eligible bachelorettes. And they used such a good headshot of you too."_

"Chairman." Riyo feels her cheeks flush in embarrassment. "Please. Not you too."

 _"My daughter was quite adamant that we should invite you to our annual Trickster's Ball. Would you accept such an invitation?"_

"Flattering as that may be, I am extremely busy with work. I'm afraid I must decline."

 _"I'll try next year then."_ Papanoida puts the flimsimag aside. _"Did you get the data cards I sent you?"_

"Yes, Chairman. Your plans are sound, but I have a few concerns."

Riyo and Papanoida spend the next fifteen minutes talking about business and trade agreements. She almost forgets about the gossip rags until he says goodbye.

 _"Good luck with your search, Senator,"_ Papanoida says, _"and don't worry, the flimsimags will eventually lose interest and move on to a fresher topic."_

"Thank you," Riyo manages to say. As soon as the call ends, she slumps down again and rests her head on her desk. "Ugh."

She doesn't bother straightening up when the door slides open. Magnus comes in and regards her for a moment.

"Senator? Are you alright?"

Riyo sighs and lifts her head. "Is this my life now, Captain? Am I to spend the rest of my days fighting off public speculation about who I take to bed?"

"Sounds like you can use a break."

"A break sounds fantastic."

"Good, because one has arrived." Magnus moves to the side to reveal Ahsoka Tano. Ahsoka's eighteen now, taller than Riyo, with two lightsabers hanging from her belts. While her outfit isn't as revealing as her previous one, it can't hide the muscle definition that Ahsoka's been developing lately.

That's…Riyo clenches her hands in her lap. The Trickster Goddex must be laughing at her right now. They must be having the time of Their immortal life. Magnus leaves and the door slides shut after him.

Riyo realizes that she's staring and once she's picked her jaw off the floor, she says, "hello, Ahsoka. You heard all that."

"Hi, Riyo." One of Ahsoka's eyebrow markings goes up. "I heard some of it. What's going on?"

"My apologies. It's been a long day." Riyo gestures that Ahsoka take a seat.

"Tell me about it," Ahsoka sits down and hands Riyo a take-out box. Ahsoka doesn't say it, but she's actually back from Mandalore, where she successfully kept Lux Bonteri from joining Death Watch. In order to keep themselves alive, however, they had to pose as a couple, and he ended up kissing her. Sure, it was a fake relationship, and it was a fake kiss, but she would be a liar if she said she didn't enjoy it.

So why does she feel like Bantha poodoo about it?

"What's with all the data cards?" Ahsoka asks. "Are you working on another essay?"

"Oh, if only that were it," Riyo says. "No, they're invitations to extravagant parties thrown by high-class Pantorans."

"I don't understand. You've never gotten this many invitations before."

Riyo flushes indigo. "It's, ah, how do I say this? This time, older well-to-do Pantorans are hoping to introduce me to their children. Children who happen to be my age."

"You-oh!" Understanding dawns in Ahsoka's eyes. "Wow!"

"Indeed."

"Are you gonna go?"

"You cannot pay me enough credits to go to any of them," Riyo says, and Ahsoka breaks into giggles. "This is funny to you?"

Ahsoka's laughing so hard that she can only nod her head.

"Well at least my pain serves some purpose," Riyo says, flatly.

"Ah, oh Force," Ahsoka wipes her eyes on the heel of her palm. "Next you'll be telling me you've been getting proposals."

Riyo stares, stone-faced, at her. Ahsoka shrieks with delight.

"You are! Are there _pictures?_ Please tell me they sent you pictures."

"Yes, there are pictures. No, I'm not showing you," Riyo says. "I'm turning them all down."

"Whoa, really?" Ahsoka sobers up.

"Yes," Riyo says. "They're not what I'm looking for."

"Oh?" Ahsoka's gaze falls to her food, which she pokes at with a fork. "What are you looking for then?"

"Doesn't matter. Perhaps I'm not ready for a relationship right now."

"Maybe you could try giving some of them a chance?"

"Perhaps I could try death sticks too, but then I think I better not."

"Harsh much? What if there's someone really special in that pile?"

"Many families would jump at the chance to control Pantora's senator," Riyo says. She didn't even think of the possibility that people could be _that underhanded_ until Padmé warned her about it after some light teasing.

"I've no time to vet the intentions of any of these suitors. Don't worry, if there's anyone truly interested, they'll send me a follow up asking for another chance. Better?"

But Ahsoka keeps avoiding Riyo's eye. A horrible thought forms in her mind and she sets her food to the side and stands up.

"Come with me," Riyo says, and she beckons to her even as she's sweeping out of her office.

"Where're we going?" Ahsoka asks. She walks out with Riyo to the plaza with the fountain. The sky is overcast and threatens to rain. Other people tug coats and cloaks tighter around themselves against the encroaching chill. Riyo and Ahsoka stand in front of the fountain for a few moments before Riyo turns to her.

"You found out."

It isn't a question, and there isn't any doubt as to what she's referring to. Ahsoka winces.

"Yeah. I didn't mean to, it just sort of happened."

Riyo turns back to watch the fountain, her heart threatening to beat out of her chest. "That pesky Force, always showing you the secrets in my head. But you can't help it, can you?"

"No. Riyo, look…."

"Please," Riyo interrupts. "Please let me say this. I…I love you, Ahsoka, and I know you can't love me back, and that's alright. I've made my peace with it." Riyo takes a shuddery breath. "So please don't think that I'm expecting a reply—or anything else—from you, because I'm not. I'd rather we be friends than nothing at all. Is that alright with you?"

Ahsoka nods. "I'm sorry, Riyo."

"Don't feel bad. I can deal with it." Riyo puts a hand on Ahsoka's shoulder, then walks off back to her office, leaving Ahsoka alone at the fountain.

* * *

 _Purpose before feelings_ is the Jedi way. Ahsoka watches Steela and Lux flirt and she aches and aches some more, but like a masochist, she can't look away. Anakin lowers a comforting hand onto her shoulder.

He tells her that he understands her plight.

Ahsoka thinks about what Riyo said about Padmé and Anakin and couples them with her own observations. She wonders how Anakin can keep up with having two different lives. But as interesting as that is, that isn't going to help her with her current problem.

It's hard to dislike Steela, who's passionate and highly capable. And it's not like Ahsoka owns Lux. So what's the problem? What does Ahsoka want? What does she _want_? Because clearly, she going to have to make a choice.

Ahsoka takes a deep breath as she watches Lux from afar. When she exhales, she releases all of the romantic feelings she's had for him.

It's really that simple.

Soon after, she learns that it's easier to get along with Lux as a friend than as a romantic interest. She also learns that she will never forget watching Steela drop over that cliff.

When Ahsoka gets onto the Jedi ship headed for Coruscant, a Bacta patch stuck over the back of her left shoulder, she goes to her assigned cabin and flops onto her bunk. She's a little lightheaded, and every time she closes her eyes, Steela's death replays. How is she supposed to sleep like this? Ahsoka breathes in. Out. Her mind circles and sinks deep into her skull. In. Out. Deeper. Deeper. She feels weightless, like she's floating in water.

"You can open your eyes now," someone says. Ahsoka finds that she's no longer on the ship. She's sitting at a round table in a machine shop and standing at the table beside her is another Ahsoka, only this one's wearing goggles, leather work gloves and a dark apron. The table's littered with tools and parts, and this Mechanic Ahsoka is elbow-deep in a strange machine. Clumps of wires spill out of the opening and onto the table around it like guts.

"You're me?" Ahsoka asks. "How?"

DING. The machine that Mechanic's working on lights up and a screen in the front activates. It plays footage of Ahsoka getting shot by a tank blaster; the same shot that made her drop Steela. The screen replays it a couple times before it pops and fizzles out.

"No, come back!" Mechanic pounds on the machine with the meat of her fist, but gets no response from it. "Ah kark. I know Force-sensitives are pretty tough, but you got _shot by a tank_. Normal people would _explode_. Lesser Jedi would lose their arms. Your body's trying to cope and if you fall into a coma while you do, then whatever it takes to survive, I guess."

"Why'd you even stick your neck out for her in the first place?" Sith-possessed Ahsoka slinks out of the shadows and settles into a chair on the other side of the table, dividing it evenly among all three Ahsokas. "What has she ever done for you?"

"Hi?" Ahsoka asks, astonished. "What are _you_ doing in here?"

Sithsoka tosses her head. "Rude, I'm supposed to be here."

"She is," Mechanic says to Ahsoka. "I guess while you're in here, you're going to figure things out."

"What things?" Ahsoka asks. "What are we doing in here?"

"You've been learning the Jedi way all your life," Mechanic says, "but have you ever wondered why they were the way they are?"

"Not really," Ahsoka says.

"Then can you really claim to understand them?" Mechanic asks.

"Hmm, I guess not."

"Thought so." Mechanic takes up a couple wires and snips them with a pair of wire strippers, then she twists the ends together. These she covers with a plastic cap and electrical tape. There's another pop, and the screen flickers back on.

 _What are Jedi?_ the screen blares, right before it catches fire. Mechanic yelps and runs to get a fire extinguisher, which she uses to douse out the fire. Sithsoka cackles.

"Shut up," Mechanic snaps. When the fire's out, she drops the extinguisher on a metal counter and gestures to Ahsoka and Sithsoka. "We have a Jedi, and a Sith, so let's begin. What are Jedi, really?"

"A bunch of annoying, stuffy know-it-alls," Sithsoka says.

Ahsoka frowns. "We're protectors of the galaxy. Protectors of peace and justice. We're wise, and patient."

"Sounds about right." Mechanic hits the machine again and the screen fizzles again. "Work, you piece of garbage."

 _What are Sith?_

Ahsoka rolls her eyes. "Easy. They're creepy, bloodthirsty crazies."

Sithsoka sneers. "We're _powerful_."

"And also extremely selfish," Mechanic says. Sithsoka sticks her tongue out at them.

"But I already know all these things," Ahsoka says. "Why are we going over this?"

"Gotta lay the groundwork first," Mechanic says. She plunges her hands back into the machine and after a little fumbling, the screen changes.

 _What turns a Jedi into a Sith?_

"Dark emotions, like hate, anger, and fear," Ahsoka says. "Master Yoda says that fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering."

Mechanic shrugs. "Sure, but life is full of suffering. An attitude adjustment may help, but it won't keep it from happening. And doesn't suffering also lead to wisdom? Riyo's been through a lot, and she's pretty wise."

Sithsoka giggles. "She could also be a serial killer."

"Yeah, but she _isn't_ a serial killer, you nut." Mechanic pauses her work and wipes her forehead on her arm, leaving behind a dark smudge on her face. "My point is, plenty people have suffered and they don't turn out bad. Damaged maybe, but not bad."

"Riyo isn't a Force-wielder," Ahsoka says.

"Does it matter? Anyone can pull the trigger of a blaster."

"Where are you going with this?"

"What if maybe the Jedi Code might be wrong about some things? For instance, how can they encourage compassion and yet discourage Attachments between people? Where do you draw the line?"

"You draw that line around yourself," Sithsoka says. "People are tools, meant to be used and discarded."

Ahsoka and Mechanic regard her with utter disgust.

"Yikes," Mechanic says. Sithsoka just shrugs, unashamed.

"There are Force Bonds between master and padawan," Ahsoka says, "but…uh it's complicated. Anakin and I have a really strong bond, but we aren't stellar examples of quintessential Jedi. Master Windu is more like it. Master Unduli's another."

Sithsoka throws her head back and laughs. "Are you kidding me? That's your example of upstanding Jedi? Unduli dropped Barriss faster than hot Bantha droppings when you guys were trapped in that weapons factory. She didn't even grieve!"

Ahsoka lowers her gaze. "Master Skywalker did say that it _was_ kind of heartless."

"Hmm. Do they expect you to let go of Steela just as quickly?" Mechanic asks. "How do they reconcile that kind of distance with their values of compassion?"

"I don't know," Ahsoka says. "People matter. Steela mattered."

"Other people make life worth living," Mechanic says. "Otherwise, what are we fighting for?"

"But Attachments are forbidden because they lead to jealousy and anger and envy," Ahsoka says. "It leads to the Dark Side."

Sithsoka sneers. "You say that, but Jedi fight for harmony and peace. All that prissy poodoo. Aren't Attachments examples of harmony and peace between people?"

"Excuse you!" Ahsoka bristles and turns to Mechanic. "Are you gonna let her say that?"

Mechanic is busy wiping out the inside of the scorched machine with a rag. "You ask me that like I'm moderating a debate, but I'm not. We're having a discussion."

Ahsoka crosses her arms. "Fine. But Attachments still lead to the Dark Side. People come and go, and they die. If people are too close to you, then you fear their death, and fear leads to the Dark Side."

"Huh." Mechanic pauses her work to look at Sithsoka. "Tell us again, do Sith even care about other people?"

Sithsoka giggles. "No. I told you already. People are tools."

Mechanic hefts the bundles of wires back into the machine and mutters, "they're not the only tools in here."

"I heard that!"

"What do the masters say when a Jedi goes Dark?" Mechanic asks. "They _fall_ to the Dark Side? They're… _consumed_ by the Dark Side?"

"Either works," Ahsoka says. "You're saying that people who fall don't know moderation? That they have too much of a dark emotion?"

"Too much of a good thing, you mean," Sithsoka says.

"Good?" Ahsoka asks. "The only way _you'll_ ever have any good in you is if you _eat_ a newborn youngling."

"Don't tempt me," Sithsoka says. Mechanic sighs.

"Force, I _can't_ with you. Anyways." Mechanic turns back to Ahsoka. "Yeah. Moderation. Life is messy and intense, so people are gonna be messy and intense too. We can't help it."

"So you're saying that as long as we aren't extra, then we should be fine?" Ahsoka asks. "That's _heresy_. Either you're attached, or you're detached. There isn't some weird in-between zone."

"We _are_ here to talk about Jedi values," Mechanic says, but she's interrupted by Sithsoka.

"If that's true, then it sounds like the Jedi rules are set up to _make_ people fail," she says.

"The Code has been around for thousands of years," Ahsoka says. "It works."

"So all the current Jedi are following the Code right now?" Sithsoka asks. "This instant?"

"Um, No. Master Skywalker has an Attachment," Ahsoka says. "He's in a relationship with Padmé Amidala."

Sithsoka scoffs. "Hypocrite."

"Hypocrite," Mechanic agrees. She turns to Ahsoka. "Has it destroyed him?"

Ahsoka shakes her head no. "Not yet."

"Interesting. So he must be doing something right," Mechanic says. She seals the machine back up and flips a switch. It hums and doesn't sputter. The screen blasts Ahsoka with light. It's bright enough to make her wince.

"Whoa!" She brings up her hands to shield herself. "Can you turn it down?"

"No can do." Mechanic gives a little wave. "See you later!"

When Ahsoka wakes up, she's in the First Republic Hospital. A medical droid shines a light into her eyes.

 _"She's awake!"_ the droid says. _"Notify Anakin Skywalker."_

* * *

Note Bene: Sith-possessed Ahsoka is a treat to write. She's so depraved. It's wonderful.

I wanted Ahsoka and Riyo to be the same age, but when I hashed Riyo's backstory, I couldn't reconcile her age with her job, so in this story, she's two-three years older than Ahsoka. I hope that's okay.

I'm glad you readers are liking this story so far. That everyone's having fun. That means a lot to me. As always, please leave feedback. Let me know what you liked and didn't like and I'll see you guys next time. I can't guarantee replies like I've been doing, but I do see and read all the comments.


	5. One Angry Pantoran

_Breaking News_ flashes across the holoscreen before a male Hosnian anchor appears.

 _"Good evening, Galactic Republic. Welcome to tonight's segment of HNN. I'm Lyrax Pentigure. Tonight's top story: A planet-wide manhunt is underway by the Republic for the recapture of Jedi padawan Ahsoka Tano. She is considered armed and dangerous and was last seen fleeing into the Coruscanti undercity. The Five Hundred and First Legion, led by Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker, has assured the public that they are doing everything within their power to bring her back into custody. Padawan Tano is charged with the murder of Letta Turmond and with the extensive bombing of the Jedi Temple hangar that happened earlier this week, which left at least two dozen dead and many more wounded. Joining us tonight is Rogan Cham, who is live at the Republic prison and taking statements from witnesses. We go to him now. Rogan, are you there?"_

Riyo can't hear the rest of the segment over the ringing in her ears. What? _What?_

 _"We have gotten a hold of the footage of the murder of Mrs. Turmond. Please be warned, what you will see is quite graphic and not suitable for younglings. If you have a heart condition, please look away now."_

They play the clip. Riyo's jaw drops in horror.

 _"While we have invited the Jedi Council to send a representative here tonight, they have declined, citing professional conflict of interest,"_ Lyrax says. _"So joining me tonight is a third-party analyst specializing in the Force. Thank you for being here this evening, Doctor."_

 _"Thank you for having me, Lyrax."_

 _"In the clip, Padawan Tano appears to be using the Force to murder Mrs. Turmond. Is that possible for a Force-wielder to do?"_

 _"Yes, quite possible…."_

Riyo turns off the holoscreen and lets the remote slip from her numbed fingers. It lands with a muffled thump on the rug next to her foot. Thoughts, half-formed, swim in Riyo's head, each shouting for attention.

 _She's a good person!_

 _Could always investigate it yourself…._

 _Don't be so naive! That clip is damning enough._

 _You're a senator, not a detective._

 _She ran. She ran! How guilty does that look?_

The room spins around Riyo and she shuts her eyes. She thinks about how warm Ahsoka's eyes are when she smiles. They're the clearest blue.

 _If you get involved, you'll be put on lists._

 _That's never stopped you before._

 _You're going to form an opinion without all the evidence?_

 _Sure you're thinking clearly? You've got that crush…._

"Shush!" Riyo shouts to herself. All the anxious, extra thoughts in her head fall silent. She clenches her jaw and picks up her black data pad to send a few messages. Thirty minutes later, and she has strong-armed herself into having access to the investigation files. She opens them up and reads, but the more she reads, the angrier she gets.

Letta Turmond's body hasn't been scheduled for an autopsy.

All the guards that Ahsoka allegedly beat up when she escaped the prison facility haven't been interrogated.

Despite having multiple security holocams in that prison, the footage from all the other holocams isn't being gathered, or looked at, or submitted into evidence.

Riyo wants to throw the data pad across the room. Either the investigators are inept eopies, or someone is actively trying to hide evidence. She gasps, and her mind goes light speed.

Ahsoka's being framed, but it's not by just one person. The one who murdered Turmond must be a Force-wielder, by virtue of the Force choke. There must be at least one other person to hide the proof of the existence of the first. An entire team maybe. And they're doing all this without being noticed. Who has enough power to set this all up? Who has enough influence?

The more Riyo thinks about it, the more a sense of foreboding settles in her stomach.

Does she still want to get involved?

* * *

The next morning, over yet another cup of coffee, Riyo watches the blank holoscreen and wonders how badly she'll regret turning it on, but turns it on anyway. On the holoscreen, a female Twi'lek anchor straightens the data pad on her desk before looking up at the camera.

 _"Good morning, Galactic Republic. This is Ultana Anya for Coruscant News Desk on HNN. Today's top story: Former Jedi padawan Ahsoka Tano was captured by Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker and the Five Hundred and First Legion late last night in the Coruscanti undercity, where she was found in possession of a couple hundred kilograms of nano-droid explosives. Admiral Wilhuff Tarkin released a statement assuring the Republic that Miss Tano will be charged with Treason against the Republic and that her trial is scheduled to take place later this morning in a public military tribunal. Miss Tano is also charged with the murder of Letta Turmond and with…."_

Riyo turns the holoscreen off and picks up her black data pad. She's been monitoring the investigation all night for any changes and new evidence, but none have showed up. She switches out of the Investigation site and goes into the court dockets to search for Ahsoka's trial. When she finds it, she scans the names for Ahsoka's assigned litigator: Padmé Amidala.

Of course she would be. And who else would do the job justice? Riyo calls Padmé's hologram comlink. It rings twice before it's answered.

 _"Riyo?"_ Padmé asks before she peers closer. _"Are you alright?"_

"Just another all-nighter. That doesn't matter. May I talk to you about Ahsoka's trial?"

Padmé's eyes widen in surprise. _"Yes, but not over comlink. There's not much time. Please meet me in my office, Riyo."_

"Thank you, Padmé."

When the call ends, Riyo packs her things and is out the door in less than a minute.

* * *

Padmé's office is bright with morning sunlight and finely decorated. It even smells faintly of potpourri. Padmé ushers Riyo into her office and locks the door behind them.

"Have you eaten breakfast yet?" Padmé asks.

"What? No." How can she eat at a time like this? "Padmé, have you seen the files for this case? It's so unfair. How could they do this to her? How could the Jedi expel her from the Order?"

"It doesn't look good," Padmé says. She presses a rainbow berry muffin into Riyo's hands. "I'll do my best, but really, it's up to Anakin."

"What do you mean?" Riyo asks. She takes a bite of the muffin out of politeness and finds that she's actually really hungry. She takes another bite.

"Anakin's trying to find the real culprit of the Jedi bombings." Padmé eases into her chair with a sigh. "He has a lead, but we don't know how long it'll take for him to follow up on it."

"So all you can do is stall." Riyo finishes her muffin and wipes the crumbs from her mouth. "But if you drag the trial on too much, the Chancellor will throw you out in Contempt of Court."

"True. And therein lies the problem. I cannot be a good litigator for Ahsoka and stall for Anakin at the same time."

"But someone else could stall."

Padmé nods. "It would be incredibly difficult."

"Let me do it," Riyo says. "Please."

Padmé beams at Riyo. It's gone after a moment, making Riyo wonder if she imagined it. Padmé takes up a data pad and taps on it.

"I've assigned you a place on the jury," she says. "Good luck."

"Thank you, Padmé. Good luck to you too."

"And Riyo," Padmé calls to her just before she leaves. "You cannot falter. Not even once."

Riyo nods and the door of the office slides shut between them.

* * *

The following items are not allowed in the courtroom: all weapons, comlinks, and (for some reason) Neimoidian finger traps. Riyo gives up her derringer and her comlink to Magnus before she steps into the Jury Box and settles into her seat, leaving him to wait for her outside. The courtroom is a vast, empty, intimidating room. The Chancellor sits on the Judge's Dais, which is raised to the highest point in the courtroom. He sits in his chair like a king in his throne.

The Jury Box and the Press Box are the next highest points in the room on opposite sides of the the Judge's Dais, and below them are the Gallery Boxes, where people can sit in on the trial and watch as long as they're quiet. They're full to the brim with people, and their low murmurs echo around the room. In the middle of the court are platforms for the defense and prosecution.

When Ahsoka is escorted onto the defendant's platform, the sound from the Gallery rise in volume and the Vice Chancellor must bang his staff on the floor to keep order. Everyone in the Jury Box is too steeped in a culture of politeness and ceremony to contribute to the noise, but their cool demeanor is damning enough. Ahsoka looks so small from where Riyo sits; a spot of orange surrounded by the dark, gaping abyss below. Padmé and Tarkin take their respective places as the defense and prosecution.

Thus, the Trial of Ahsoka Tano begins.

Padmé is a marvelous litigator; eloquent and concise. As terrible as these last two days are, at least Riyo gets to watch her in action. However, Padmé has pitifully little to work with and her defense is short.

Admiral Tarkin undoes all of Padmé's good work within minutes. He's not the stirring orator that Padmé is, but he has a mountain of evidence, and he knows how to heckle Ahsoka, who takes his bait.

Too soon, the jurors are sequestered in a soundproof room to deliberate. On Pantora, juries must reach a unanimous vote, making hung juries possible. On Coruscant, the majority jury vote wins, so Riyo must keep everyone from casting their votes as long as possible.

The head juror is Senator Kin Robb, a hawkish woman whose apathy for Riyo is only matched by her loathing for Separatists. They're joined by Senators Bail Organa, Mon Mothma, and a few other senators, bringing their number up to twelve. They sit around a long conference table, leaving Kin Robb the seat at the head.

"My fellow senators," Kin says. "I think we've heard all that we need to hear. On the table before you are one-time-use data pads, where you will cast your votes for Miss Tano's fate."

"Wait! Please." Riyo stands up.

"Senator Chuchi, you have something to say?" Kin asks.

Riyo looks around the room at the other senators and steels herself. "Yes. You see, I believe that Ahsoka Tano is innocent, and this is why."

Riyo stands there and talks. She doesn't stop.

Halfway into the first hour of her speech, Bail Organa seems to catch on to what she's doing, and he settles back in his seat. The only sign of his amusement is a subtle twitch of his goatee. He catches Mon's eye and winks at her, and Mon looks back and forth between the both of them in astonishment. She too, makes herself comfortable and folds her hands in her lap.

At the one hour mark, a clone trooper knocks on the door.

"Excuse me, Senators. Is everything alright in there?"

"Yes, trooper." Kin shoots Riyo an annoyed look. "One of us is still deliberating."

"Ah. I see," the trooper says. "I'll take my leave then." He goes, and everyone turns back to Riyo.

"You were saying, Senator Chuchi?" Bail asks. Riyo continues. At the two hour mark, the trooper knocks again.

"I've brought lunch for everyone."

"Thank you, Trooper," Kin says. "Senator Chuchi, are you done?"

"I'm not done, Senator Robb." Riyo ignores the groans of the other senators. Kin stands aside so that the trooper can carry bags of sandwiches into the room.

"If you are so determined to speak, then I suppose you won't be needing any food," Kin says. Mon's eyes widen and a senator on the other end of the table gasps. Riyo's eyes narrow. She knew that this might happen. She straightens up and looks Kin in the eye.

"You are correct, Senator. I won't be needing food. If I may continue?"

"Please do," Mon says.

Riyo talks. She kicks off her shoes to stand more comfortably, but its too late. Her feet and legs are already in pain from fatigue. At the three hour mark, another Senator raises his hand.

"Are there breaks? I would like to use the refresher."

Mumbled agreement winds its way around the room.

"Unfortunately, Senator," Bail says, "We must stay in here until we cast our votes."

"You can't keep us in here forever," Kin says.

"Indeed," Bail says. "We'll go one at a time then, so it isn't an official break. Senator Chuchi, I'm afraid your predicament disqualifies you from reprieve."

"Thank you for your consideration, Senator Organa," Riyo says. "Fortunately, I am prepared to talk for a long time."

Four hours into Riyo's speech, her voice cracks. She is so tired. Her body aches from the strain of standing up for so long, but she can't lean against anything, not even the table. Her stomach has started gnawing on itself. Riyo hides her discomfort under a mask of indifference and keeps going.

Five hours in, Kin slams her hands on the table.

"Senator Chuchi, that is enough!"

"I'm," Riyo begins, but the other senators cut in.

 _"Not done,"_ they chorus.

"Yes, we know," another senator says from the back.

"Let her speak, Senator Robb," Bail says.

"Your amusement is irrelevant, Senator Organa! Senator Chuchi may be content to play a fool, but I will not let her make a mockery of the justice system!"

" _Sit down_ , Senator Robb," Riyo says. Her gold eyes are narrowed and her mouth set in a thin, savage line. Kin almost takes a step back. "I'm not done."

"No," Kin sits down. "Please continue."

Around six hours in, Riyo loses her voice. She clears her throat, and drinks some water, but in vain. Kin stands up and stares down her imperiously.

"You're done."

"No," Riyo tries to say, but it doesn't come out. Her throat is hot and ragged, like she's been swallowing razors.

"You're _done_ , Senator Chuchi," Kin says, and Riyo clenches her jaw. Not yet, not yet! She can go a little longer. Desperation squeezes her heart.

"But, I just," Riyo tries again.

"Sit. Down."

Riyo sinks down into her chair, defeated. Satisfied, Kin surveys the entire jury room.

"Despite Senator Chuchi's valiant efforts to dissuade us, we have all heard the evidence presented in the courtroom and thus already know what the verdict should be. Please take up your data pads and vote on what Miss Tano's fate should be now."

Riyo pulls her data pad towards her. She taps on _Not Guilty_ and she knows it isn't enough. When the court reconvenes, she sits back in her seat in the Jury Box and scans the courtroom for Anakin. He isn't there. She catches Padmé eye and mouths, _"Where is he?"_

Padmé gives the slightest shake of her head and lowers her gaze. Riyo clenches her hands in her lap. One of the senators stands up and reads from a small data pad.

"The members of the court have reached a decision." He taps on the screen to transfer the information to the Chancellor's data pad. The Chancellor nods and stands up to deliver the verdict.

"Ahsoka Tano, by an overwhelming count of," but he never gets to finish his sentence. Anakin Skywalker barges through the courtroom doors like a big damn hero, announcing to everyone that the real culprit is Barriss Offee.

* * *

Ahsoka wants to run back into the Council Chamber and scream that she's made a mistake. That what she really does want is to be a Jedi Knight. She's earned it more than twice over. She deserves that title, and all she's ever wanted was to be a Jedi Master someday. But even as half of her is begging to go back, Ahsoka presses on, making her way out of the Jedi Temple. She can't stay in this place for another minute. The Force, merciful as It is, keeps her from bumping into anyone else on her way out. If she did meet someone, she might not keep herself together and she might even change her mind about leaving.

Anakin runs out after her and tries to get her to stay, but all he ends up doing is rehash a lot of things she already knows. He even hints at his forbidden relationship with Padmé.

"I know," Ahsoka says, and Anakin gapes down at her. Ahsoka looks out at the sunset and remembers a different sunset seen from an observation deck so many years ago. In that instant, she realizes that she can't just leave Anakin here like this. She whirls around to talk to him again, surprising them both.

"Come with me."

"Ahsoka."

"I'm serious. Come with me! _Expelled. Expelled and barred from the Jedi Order._ Those are the words the Council used, so they can chew on that. But you, I could never turn my back on you. No matter what happens, you'll always be my master."

Anakin's look of surprise softens into incredible fondness. Ahsoka presses on.

"You could be who you want, be _with_ who you want! What do you say?"

Anakin closes his eyes. "I can't."

Ahsoka, resigned, gives him a watery smile. "It's a standing offer then. I'll see you around, Skyguy."

"Wait," Anakin says. He looks down at the padawan braid clenched in his fist and takes Ahsoka's hand. When he pulls away, he leaves the braid clasped around her wrist as a bracelet. Ahsoka stares in wonder at it, then reaches up to cover it with her other hand.

"You're a sap." Ahsoka smiles despite herself.

"You're the one who's about to cry. You still wanna leave the Jedi?"

"Yeah. I can't…I need to figure things out, and I can't do that with the Council looking over my shoulder."

"I'm gonna miss you, Snips."

"I'll miss you too, Skyguy."

"Have fun. Be safe," Anakin shouts as Ahsoka walks away so that she can still hear him. "Make good choices!"

Ahsoka laughs through her tears as she walks down the Jedi Temple steps. She almost bumps into her old Astromech droid.

"R7?" Ahsoka asks. She clears her throat. R7 whistles. "What are you doing here?"

R7 beeps.

"I can't. I'm not a Jedi anymore." Something cracks in Ahsoka's chest at that and she shifts her weight from one foot to the other. "I'm not a Jedi anymore. And you belong to the Republic."

R7 beeps again.

"That's called stealing."

Halfway into R7's tirade, Ahsoka raises her hand.

"Stop, no need to curse. Fine, come with me, but I don't have a plan."

R7 extends his manipulators and presents a wrist hologram comlink with a flourish. _Ta-da!_

"For me? Aw, you shouldn't have." Ahsoka snaps the comlink onto the forearm of her gauntlet and notices that there's a missed call. She calls back and after a couple beeps, Padmé's bust appears in the hologram.

"Padmé!"

 _"Hi, Ahsoka, I just heard the news from Anakin. I'm sorry it didn't work out with the Jedi."_

"It's okay. Thanks again for being my litigator. It means a lot."

 _"You're very welcome, but I didn't do it all myself. You should thank Riyo too."_

"Riyo? She was on the jury, right? What did she do?"

Padmé's eyes widen in surprise. _"You don't know? No one told you why the jury deliberated for so long?"_

"No. Why? What happened?"

 _"Riyo stalled the jury vote with a filibuster. She gave Anakin time to investigate. Bail tells me she did very well."_

"Oh," Ahsoka says. That's all she can say.

 _"You should go see her."_

"Yeah, I'll go see her," Ahsoka repeats. A knowing smile spreads across Padmé's face and she gives a little wave before she ends the call. Ahsoka sighs. "Let's go, R7."

* * *

Riyo has fallen asleep in her office chair, which is impressive, considering how uncomfortable it looks. Ahsoka and Magnus watch her from the other side of the desk, absolutely unsurprised.

"She hasn't slept in close to thirty-six hours." Magnus's whisper is a low rumble in his chest.

"Then she shouldn't be here, she should go home," Ahsoka whispers back.

"She won't listen to me, but she'll listen to you."

Ahsoka moves closer. Despite the angle of Riyo's neck, she still looks incredibly peaceful while asleep, and Ahsoka almost doesn't want to disturb her. Riyo's forehead is smoothed free of thought, and her dark lashes rest against her cheeks. A loose lock of purple hair has fallen across her face, and Ahsoka reaches out, wanting to tuck it behind her ear.

She falters and gently shakes Riyo's shoulder instead.

"Riyo," she whispers. Riyo stirs under her hand and Ahsoka pulls away. "Wake up."

"Ahsoka," Riyo tries to say. Ahsoka gasps.

"You lost your voice."

"I'm fine." Tea and honey hasn't improved Riyo's voice much. It's still raspy and painful to hear. She straightens up in her chair and stretches out the kinks in her back. There's a popping sound and she sighs and relaxes.

"You need to rest," Ahsoka says.

"I need to work," Riyo whispers.

"How can you work like this?" Ahsoka asks. When Riyo doesn't answer, Ahsoka smirks. "There, see? I win. Come on, we're taking you home."

"We?"

"Yeah," Ahsoka says. She and Magnus share a look. "I feel kinda responsible."

"But it's not your fault."

"Riyo, let me take care of you."

Riyo hesitates, then nods. She picks up her bag and the three of them leave the office.

* * *

When they get into Riyo's apartment, R7 requests a power outlet and Riyo points to one. R7 beeps his thanks and rolls off to recharge. Riyo goes into the kitchen and Ahsoka follows her.

"Are you really going to cook right now?"

"I can still do things."

"Wow, no. I promised that I'd take care of you, so that's what I'm gonna do."

Riyo gives a silent chuckle. "Then can you please make tea?"

Ahsoka makes tea and cooks bacon and eggs, which is the only thing she knows how to cook without Riyo's help. They eat in the living room while watching a hologram show, and whenever Riyo says some scathing commentary, she has to lean closer to Ahsoka so that she can hear her. Ahsoka doesn't really mind how close they end up getting. It's cozy, with her in her customary blanket and Riyo as warm as she is. As nice as…whatever is happing is, however, Ahsoka can't shake this mess of emotion that's bottled up in the back of her mind. It's demanding and needy and it pops.

"I can't believe Barriss killed those people," Ahsoka says. Riyo glances at her and turns the volume of the holoscreen down.

"Neither can I," she whispers.

Ahsoka closes her eyes against forming tears. "Maybe someone put her up to it? Maybe it's an act?"

"I doubt anyone could make Barriss do anything she didn't think was in the interest of the greater good."

"Then…then how long has she felt this way? And she didn't talk to anyone? She didn't talk to Master Unduli. She didn't talk _to me_ and we're supposed to be friends. I don't understand why she didn't just…tell someone."

"Maybe she felt like she couldn't go to anyone in the Jedi Order," Riyo whispers. "When you were feeling bad about things, you came to me, and I'm not a Jedi."

"That's…true," Ahsoka says. Everyone else in the Jedi Order is fighting in this war, and no one ever complains. So who the hell is Ahsoka to complain? Who is she even supposed to talk to? Anakin and Obi-Wan are always too absorbed in the next stages of the war to decompress. Plo is usually in the Outer Rim and too busy to take a comlink call. Just keep that lightsaber up, and keep your head down, and maybe you'll live to see tomorrow.

But Barriss couldn't cope. Ahsoka remembers their call through the hologram booth, and the fight in the warehouse. There was no time then to notice anything other than Asajj's helmet and lightsabers, but in hindsight, the assailant was so much shorter than Asajj.

"But still, how could she _frame me_?" Ahsoka asks. "I thought…I thought I meant more to her than that."

"I'm sorry," Riyo whispers.

"It's…I'm so confused. Everything's messed up. Barriss was supposed to be a good person, but…you know. And then Ventress was supposed to be Sith scum, but she's not anymore?"

Riyo's eyes widen in surprise. "Asajj Ventress isn't a Sith anymore?"

"No, she's not. She's just a bounty hunter now. And, _and_ she helped me while I was on the run. I guess the galaxy is a wonderful place sometimes? Everything was so clear, and now it's not. It's so…it's."

Riyo lays a hand over Ahsoka's clenched fist. Ahsoka blinks and realizes that the mug of tea and data cards on the coffee table are rattling. She loosens her hands and the rattling stops.

"You're overwhelmed," Riyo whispers. She pulls away and continues as if nothing out of the ordinary has happened. "When I feel that way, I find it's a lot more manageable to handle one problem at a time. It's not alright, what's happened to you, and it's not going to go away overnight. But maybe, if you chip at it bit by bit, it'll get better."

"Yeah," Ahsoka says, still staring at the mug. "Yeah."

"Do you have a place to stay?"

"What?" Ahsoka can't believe her montrals. Stay here, with Riyo? After that little display? Considering what she might still _do_?

"You could stay here until you get back on your feet," Riyo whispers. She clears her throat and winces.

Ahsoka gapes. "That might not be a good idea. I'll stay somewhere else."

"It's no problem, Ahsoka. Don't worry about it. So many others have abandoned you. I won't be put on that same list. You can take the couch. I'll get you a pillow." Riyo gives Ahsoka a smile and leaves. She comes back with a pillow and an armful of blankets, which she presses into Ahsoka's arms.

"How do you have all this?" Ahsoka asks as she makes her bed on the couch. "I thought Pantorans didn't feel cold?"

"Are you saying Pantorans can't be comfy?" Riyo asks. When Ahsoka sputters, she laughs. "I'm only teasing. We don't feel the cold while we're awake, but when we sleep, our body temperature gets dangerously low and we could slip into a pseudo-hibernation state."

"Oh so that's why you sleep with sweatpants?" Ahsoka asks.

"No, I don't wear—yes. That's why I sleep with sweatpants." Riyo flushes indigo and can't meet Ahsoka's eyes. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Ahsoka considers leaving Riyo's apartment. When she first started using the Force, it was akin to a youngling clumsily learning how to walk. If she tripped and fell, she was only in danger of hurting herself. She's never lost control of the Force like that before. It felt _cold_. Ahsoka pulls her blanket tighter around herself.

If she left now, then Riyo would be safe. It sickens her to think that she could be dangerous to anyone, let alone to Riyo, but she is.

However, Riyo's the only one so far who's helping her through this. If she left now, then there's a very good chance that whatever is going on with her is going to get worse. Riyo may have learned a little about the Force throughout their friendship, but she wouldn't know what happens when a Force-sensitive gets…unfocused.

"Ugh." Ahsoka buries her face in her hands. Great. This is just what she needs on top of what's happened: an ethical dilemma.

BWOOP BWOOP. R7 rolls towards her. Ahsoka gives him a tired smile.

"Hey, bud. You're a logical guy, mind solving a problem for me?"

R7 tells her that that's a terrible idea.

"I know. It's just, well." Ahsoka explains to him her dilemma in a low voice, so that she doesn't disturb Riyo. While she does this, the pieces click together in her mind and she falls silent.

R7 tells her that it sounds like she's already made up her mind. She has. Force forgive her, but she's going to stay.

* * *

The machine shop is plunged in darkness. Power tools and parts are strewn about the slick, cracked duracrete floor, tables are tipped onto their sides, and sparks fly out from loose wires in the half-demolished walls. Ahsoka struggles to free herself from a mess of wide, flexible ducts that are snaked around her.

"Hello?" she shouts. Her voice echoes back to her. She finally gets to her feet and picks her way across the mess. "Hello?"

"Help!" someone calls, and Ahsoka turns around. "Over here!"

It's Mechanic, and she's dangling from the ceiling while wrapped in a tarp and tangled in a mess of thick, cabled wires.

"Hi," Mechanic says.

"What the kriff happened in here?" Ahsoka rights the nearest table and drags it over to Mechanic, who tries her best to shrug.

"The entire week happened! You try keeping a psyche together under what's been going on lately."

"Okay, you have a point. Thank you." Ahsoka stands on the table and reaches up to pull on a couple cables. "But who put you up here?"

A sinister laugh echoes around them. Ahsoka and Mechanic share a look.

" _She's_ still in here?" Ahsoka asks. Mechanic shrugs again.

"She's a part of you like how I'm a part of you. We can't just leave."

"Where is she? Why can't I see her?"

Mechanic hisses through her teeth. "I hoped you wouldn't ask that."

"Why?"

"If you're not a Jedi anymore, then what are you?"

"What?" Ahsoka notices her hands. They're ashy and streaked with familiar sickly veins. "No!"

"Ah, wait! Don't panic!" Mechanic wriggles around, looking very much like a crazed caterpillar while she's wrapped in the tarp.

"I am not Sith!" Ahsoka shouts. All the machines in the room shake from her anger and Ahsoka gasps and turns around to look at them. Behind her, the cables snap and Mechanic falls to the floor with a crash.

"Ow."

"I'm _not_ Sith," Ahsoka repeats, her fists clenched. Mechanic wrestles her way out of the tarp and dusts herself off.

"Can you maybe chill?"

"How about maybe _you_ chill?"

"It's not a big deal."

"It's a big deal to _me_! No, you know what? No." Ahsoka raises her hands. "We're not having this conversation right now."

"You say that, but how else are we gonna clean this mess up?"

"Shush!"

Any further conversation is cut off when the machine from last time flickers to life. The two Ahsokas turn to it and get closer to better see. On the holoscreen looms the Jedi Temple, under repairs and frequented by Jedi. A bit of static later, and the Temple is on fire. Dark smoke billows into the air. People scream and run.

"Oh Force, turn it off." Ahsoka reaches out, but as soon as she touches the screen, she gets sucked through it to the steps of the Jedi Temple. She smells the smoke and the screams reverberate in her montrals.

"No!" Ahsoka shouts. She flinches when something deeper in the Temple explodes.

"Good soldiers follow orders." A clone trooper raises his blaster and aims at Ahsoka, who reaches for lightsabers that aren't there.

"Trooper, stand down," Ahsoka says.

"Good soldiers follow orders," the clone says again. He's joined by more clones who mutter the same thing and take aim. They shoot.

* * *

Note Bene:

 _Talks for six hours, the Convention is listless!  
_ _Bright, young man.  
_ _Yo, who the eff is this?_

Before I even started writing this fic, I needed to justify Riyo's status as the Senator. How the hell is she qualified to be such an important politician at such a young age? _How?_ I agonized over it until I realized that she would be qualified if she was the Pantoran pseudo-equivalent of Alexander Hamilton, hence the parallels between them.

If you've been enjoying this story and want to see more, there's good news: this story is completely written. The later chapters still need to be revised and edited, but it's all there. None of you will be left hanging.

All you readers are so great! Not just the ones that leave feedback, but all you lurkers too. Thanks for sticking with this story.


	6. The Battle of Coruscant

Riyo's voice hasn't improved the next day, but she decides to go to work anyway. For lack of anything better to do, Ashoka goes with her and, unwilling to keep R7 in Riyo's apartment unsupervised, brings him with her. Once inside the office, R7 hunkers down at the window and watches the crowds below.

Ahsoka sits on a small couch in the far corner of the office, which gives her an uninterrupted view of the entire space. The cushions are soft and they remind her of the ones found in the Jedi Temple.

The both of them fall into a companionable silence as Riyo works, one that's only broken by the sounds of her typing. Far from being a distraction, the sound of keystrokes serves as a kind of comfort to Ahsoka. After watching Riyo type for a couple minutes, Ahsoka closes her eyes and meditates.

In her mind's eye, Asajj comes out of the darkness and stands before her. The cruel curve of her mouth is deceptively more bark than bite, and the crazed glint in her eyes is gone. The 'new her,' as it were. The one who doesn't revel in blood. There's probably a story there, but Ahsoka doesn't know Asajj well enough to figure it out. She's not sure that she wants to. At the end of the day, why Asajj changed doesn't matter as much as the fact that she's changed in the first place. Asajj isn't good (she'll probably never be good), but she's…better than before, and that means that the both of them don't have to continue this feud.

Ahsoka opens her eyes and finds that she feels marginally better. One thing at a time, right?

The office door slides open and in comes Padmé Amidala, glowing like a solar fire and draped in a loose, flowing gown. Because of Ahsoka's position in the room, Padmé doesn't notice her yet, and her attention is kept on Riyo.

"Good morning, Riyo," Padmé says. "I wanted to congratulate you on your filibuster yesterday."

"Good morning, Padmé," Riyo whispers. Padmé leans back in dismay.

"You lost your voice!"

"It's not that big a deal."

"You poor girl." Padmé comes in close to get a better look at Riyo, whose ears turn indigo at the extra attention. "Do you need to see a doctor?"

"Please don't make me go to a doctor."

"Then you should get some rest. Goodness knows you of all people have earned it."

"I'll think about it."

"Please do."

The office door slides open again and in comes Bail Organa.

"Riyo!" He says. "That was a fine filibuster you made yesterday. Very well done."

"Thank you, Bail," Riyo whispers.

"Your voice hasn't returned?" Bail asks. He turns to Padmé. "Her voice hasn't returned."

"Thank you for your concern, Senators, but I'm quite alright," Riyo whispers.

"You should take a break while you still can," Bail says. "The rest of us can pick up the slack."

Padmé gives him an apologetic look. "I can't. I've a doctor's appointment scheduled tomorrow."

"Yet another appointment, Padmé?" Bail asks. "Oh but forgive me, it's none of my business. Very well. Mon and I can hold our positions in the Senate while the two of you take your breaks. What do you say, Riyo?"

"That's very kind of you," Riyo whispers. "I've no plans for a vacation, but I'll notify you of any changes that come up in my schedule."

"Please do," Bail says. "You'll actually do well to be off Coruscant for the next several days and not just to recover. Your filibuster was leaked to the press, and they're having a field day. Political analysts want to interview you."

Riyo freezes. "I can't give interviews like this."

Padmé and Bail share a knowing look, then wish Riyo luck. When they take their leave, they finally notice Ahsoka in the corner of the room.

"Miss Tano," Bail says. "I owe you an apology."

"What for?" Ahsoka asks.

"Regrettably, I thought you were guilty. I was wrong." Bail says all this with grave dignity and humbleness.

"I…thank you, Senator," Ahsoka says. Bail gives her a brief nod and leaves the office, leaving Padmé behind. Padmé looks back and forth between her and Riyo in thinly-veiled astonishment.

"Ahsoka?" Padmé asks as she comes closer. Ahsoka stands up to greet her. Riyo picks up her mug and leaves the office to give them some privacy.

"Hi, Padmé."

"You're staying with Riyo now?"

"Yeah. It's nice."

"That's good. Anakin was so worried about you." Padmé lowers her voice. "Who knew we'd be empty nesters before we've even had children?"

It's a good thing Ahsoka isn't drinking anything, because if she were, she'd spit it out right in Padmé's face.

"Okay, I knew there was something between the two of you, but I didn't know it was that serious," Ahsoka whispers.

Padmé winks. "You look like you can keep a secret. Don't be a stranger, Ahsoka. Call me if there's anything you need."

"Thanks, Padmé." Ahsoka gives a wave as Padmé leaves. Riyo comes back in and glances at Ahsoka.

"What's wrong?" Riyo asks.

"I think I just got adopted," Ahsoka says.

* * *

At ten am, for the sake of something familiar, Ahsoka dons a poncho with a roomy hood and goes out with R7 to get some food. While in line at a food speeder, she and a few other people watch an HNN debate show on a holoscreen embedded in the side of the speeder. Four people are on the panel, and they sit at a semi-circle table with the host.

"…What I want to know is where all of this evidence was two days ago when Ahsoka Tano was being charged! We're talking footage, witness statements, things that should've been covered by standard procedure," Analyst 1 says. At the mention of her name, Ahsoka pulls up her hood to hide her face. Thankfully, the people around her don't notice. The customer in front of her gives their order and hands over a few credits, then waits. On the holoscreen, the debate continues.

"The Republic did the best they could," Analyst 2 says.

"No, I refuse to believe that at their best, our officers are only capable of this kind of incompetency. Something else is going on."

"If you're looking for a conspiracy theory here, you're not going to find it."

"Fine, but any rate, we were incredibly close to carrying out a grave injustice. What's stopping it from happening a second time?"

"Here you go," the cashier says. They hand over a cardboard take-out box. "Your drink?"

"Got any meiloorun soda?" the customer asks. The cashier nods and ducks out of sight to get it.

"Well maybe the Republic would have more manpower and funds to dedicate to the domestic sphere if there wasn't a war going on!" Analyst 3 says.

Everyone else around the table groans, but Analyst 3 continues.

"I'm serious; this war is draining Republic reserves. Where is the money for public infrastructure? It's going to the war effort. Tanks and blasters aren't going to feed families."

"People, please," the anchor says. "We're talking about Barris Offee's trial."

"Yes, why is the investigation period for this trial so long, when the investigation for the previous one was so short?"

POP.

The customer reaches for the can of soda that the cashier holds out to them through the window, only for it to implode, spraying the cashier and the customer with a burst of soda. The other people in line gasp and the customer sputters and paws at their eyes.

The cashier sputters and blinks furiously to clear the soda out. "Gods in heaven, are you okay?" He grabs a few kitchen towels and hands them to the hapless customer through the window. "I'm so sorry about that. I don't know what happened. Let me get you a new one."

"Can I get a non-carbonated drink instead?" The customer dries themselves off and places the used towels on the windowsill. "Like muja juice?"

Ahsoka steps out of line and walks away with R7 in tow.

R7 gives a low whistle and Ahsoka takes a calming breath.

"Sorry, I don't know what happened."

R7 beeps and Ahsoka whirls on him.

"Hey, nothing is wrong with me! That's the first time that's ever happened, and it'll be the last time."

R7's beeping borders on frantic.

"Don't worry, I've got a lid on it." Ahsoka falls in line at a different speeder, one that doesn't have a holoscreen on it. R7 extends his manipulators and points past her at the sky. Other people around her gasp and point too.

"What?" she asks. When she turns around to see, she grasps for lightsabers that aren't there. Separatist ships, whole fleets of them, come down out of the sky. There are so many of them that they threaten to blot out the sun.

"Coruscant is under attack," Ahsoka whispers, uncomprehending. A missile flies past and hits the Senate Office building, spraying everyone underneath with debris.

"No!" Ahsoka shouts, horrified, but as she watches, two more missiles hit the building, obscuring it in smoke and fire.

One of the Separatist ships lands in the park near them and everyone around it scatters. The ship opens up and a squad of standard battle droids march out of it, shooting everything. Speeders explode, smoke billows into the air. Everyone else around Ahsoka flees and hides and even R7 takes off to safety, screaming. Soon, Ahsoka is the only person left in the plaza and the droids take aim at her.

PEW PEW PEW.

Ahsoka curses in Mando'a and ducks and weaves between blaster bolts, wishing for her lightsabers. Even though things are blowing up, people are dying, and droids are shooting at her, it almost feels like home, and she slips into a familiar state of mind. She charges at the droids, her mouth set in a thin line, and lets the Force flow through her and pool in her hands. She aims at the droids and clenches her fists.

CRUNCH. The chests of two of the droids are crushed and they go down, wailing. Ahsoka whips her fists around and the two crushed droids go flying through the squad, battering all the other droids down. She's not trying to take the entire squad out though, because that would take too long and she has places to be. As soon as she has the opportunity, she leaps through them and continues on without a second glance.

"R7!" She shouts as she runs. The red droid flies out to her from behind the husk of a burning food speeder.

He beeps, just like old times, and Ahsoka smiles despite herself. She takes cover behind the ruined fountain and activates the comlink on her gauntlet. She doesn't get through.

"Kriff! We're gonna have to make a run for it."

R7 beeps and rocks a little.

"Okay. Do you have my lightsabers? No? Then I can't do anything about this! I have to see if Riyo's okay! Are you coming with me or not?"

R7 beeps and Ahsoka nods, satisfied.

"Let's go." The both of them serpentine through blaster fire to the Senate Office building.

* * *

Magnus and Riyo stand on opposite sides of Riyo's desk, tense and ready to bolt at a moment's notice. Riyo flinches as the floor under their feet rocks with another explosion. Faster than she can blink, Magnus has stepped around the desk to grab her.

"No!" Riyo squirms in his hold, but Magnus' hand is like a vice around her forearm. "I won't leave without Ahsoka!"

"We must evacuate, Senator!" Magnus growls as he pulls her towards the door. "Gods help me, I will carry you to the bunker if I have to."

"Let me go!" Riyo punches, bites, screams, tries everything she can to get away, but Magnus weathers the abuse and, as promised, grabs her around the waist and throws her over his shoulder as if she were no bigger than a small youngling.

"Don't forget who taught you how to do all that," he says as he carries her out. The halls are eerily abandoned, but there are screams sounding from deeper in the building every time a missile hits.

"Riyo?" Ahsoka's voice comes from the other end of the hallway. "Are you still here?"

"Ahsoka!" Riyo's voice gives a painful crack. Ahsoka and R7 appear, already stained with soot and blaster scorch marks. Ahsoka eyes how Magnus has Riyo hoisted over his shoulder.

"Is…is everything okay?" Ahsoka asks.

"She was being difficult," Magnus says.

"I was," Riyo whispers. "Can you put me down now?"

Magnus places Riyo back on her feet.

"We have to get to the bunkers," Magnus says. Ahsoka nods.

"I'll take point."

Their group grows in number the further down into the building they go. Forgotten aides and other workers are found in stairwells and in offices, cowering from the barrage of missiles. Ahsoka and R7 coax them out and together, they make their way down to the bunker in the basement of the building.

The bunker is already full of senators and other workers. Some of them congregate into groups and talk quietly amongst themselves. Others keep to themselves and sleep, or play video games on their data pads. Magnus ushers Riyo onto an empty bench and R7 squeals something at Ahsoka.

"Yeah? Let me see," Ahsoka sits cross-legged on the floor before the bench and pats the floor in front of her, as if summoning a pet. R7 whistles and rolls up to her so that she can pry open the doors of his compartments.

"Yup." Ahsoka reaches in and begins picking out small pieces of debris from between his gears. "Don't worry, buddy, I got you."

BEEP. Riyo gets a call on her hologram comlink. She answers it and the bust of Chairman Papanoida appears.

"Senator," he says.

"Oh! We have a meeting," Riyo whispers. "I'm sorry, Chairman."

Papanoida frowns. "Are you on mute? I can't hear you."

"The Senator has regrettably lost her voice," Magnus scoots closer to Riyo so that the hologram comlink can see him too.

"How dreadful!" Papanoida says. "Are you going to rest, Senator? You can't expect to do any good while ill."

"There's no need for that," Riyo tries to say, but Papanoida continues over her.

"Perhaps for a week or two. Surely your schedule can manage that? You could even come home to Pantora for a while."

Ahsoka and Magnus share a look, then, before Riyo can answer, Magnus says, "capital idea, Chairman."

Riyo sputters.

"Riyo could use some rest," Ahsoka says.

"She's overdue for one, really."

Papanioda smiles. "Splendid, splendid! Looks like you'll be able to attend the Trickster's Ball after all, eh Senator?"

"Wait a minute," Magnus says, suddenly grim, but Riyo swats his arm and furiously nods her head at the comlink.

"That's the spirit!" Papanoida says. "I hope you get better soon, Senator. I look forward to seeing you at the ball."

The call ends, and the two remaining Pantorans stew in their respective annoyance for a couple moments.

"You're not going to that ball," Magnus says.

"Well I didn't want to go on vacation either, but sometimes we just have to do things we don't like," Riyo whispers in return.

Yikes, R7 beeps. Ahsoka shrugs and picks out a chunk of concrete from between his servos. She tosses it under bench with the rest and pushes the compartment door shut.

CLICK.

"You're done, bud."

R7 purrs and settles in for a long systems check. Ahsoka looks up at Riyo and Magnus, but none of them seem in the mood to talk, so she settles for another meditation session.

This time, Barriss' face emerges from the darkness, all thin and tragic. Ahsoka wants to scream in frustration, but she breathes in. Out. Her pulse steadies and her shoulders relax, but Barriss' betrayal still hurts, hurts, hurts deep in her bones. Whatever, it's done. Barriss turned out to be a terrible friend, but it doesn't mean everyone else will turn out that way. She doesn't need Barriss. She doesn't want Barriss in her life if that's how she's going to be. Ahsoka breathes in. Out. She wonders what went wrong. She wonders if it's something she did.

The Battle of Coruscant doesn't rage for very long. After a few hours, the Separatist forces retreat into space, leaving Coruscant in shambles. The bunker is unlocked and everyone leaves to go home. Magnus and Ahsoka have long since apologized to Riyo, who sighed and told them to forget about it. What's done is done, and she understands that their job is to take care of her well-being.

"So where do you want to go for vacation?" Riyo asks. Ahsoka looks at her in disbelief.

"It's your vacation though."

"I'm not the only one recovering from something. It's as much as for you as it is for me."

"Is it now?" Ahsoka asks. Riyo nods. Ahsoka's hands go to her hips, where she only finds her empty belt.

"Ilum," Ahsoka says. She's not a Jedi, but she's a still a Force-wielder, and she kind of feels naked without lightsabers.

* * *

Riyo's apartment is thankfully untouched. Riyo goes to her room to pack a large duffel bag, leaving Ahsoka and R7 in the living room. Ahsoka only half listens to the holoscreen while she folds the blankets she used last night.

"…Separatist General Grievous abducted the Chancellor from his office in the Senate District during today's appalling strike on Coruscant. The Chancellor was later rescued by Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker and Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi. The Chancellor has since released a statement in which he expresses how thankful he is to be home safe and sound."

Ahsoka perks up at her former master's name.

"In other news, the Separatist Count Dooku, also known as the Sith Lord Darth Tyrannus, is dead, struck down by Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker."

"What?" Ahsoka mutes the holoscreen and calls Anakin on her comlink. It rings twice before he answers.

"Snips!" he says.

"Skyguy!" Ahsoka says. "I just heard that you beat Dooku! Congrats!"

"Ah, yeah." Anakin's gaze falters for a second. "Thanks."

"What's wrong?"

"I could've just arrested him," Anakin says. "I should have just arrested him."

Ahsoka draws on their Force-bond and finds shades of confusion. "You're conflicted."

"It's complicated."

"It doesn't have to be. Meditation might help."

"I don't think this is something that'll just go away with meditation, Snips."

"Wanna talk about it?"

"Not yet."

"Have you talked to Padmé? Hey," Ahsoka adds when Anakin gives her a look of disbelief. "It's a valid question!"

"…No," Anakin finally says. Ahsoka crosses her arms.

"I might not know much about relationships, but I hear open communication is all the rage between people who do have them."

"Ha ha. Better not let Senator Chuchi hear that you think the thing between you two is 'not much.'"

"You…mean our friendship?"

Anakin backpedals at Ahsoka's blank stare. "Holy—wow never mind I said anything."

"No, tell me. What does Riyo have to do with any of this?"

"I just assumed…well, you've been staying with her, right?"

Ahsoka sighs and reaches out with the Force. Riyo's still in her room, packing, and the door is closed. She doesn't have to worry about her eavesdropping. "Well yeah, but I don't know what to do. I don't know how I feel about her, or about any of this."

"Feelings can be difficult to tackle when you've been raised to ignore them," Anakin says. "I mean, the Council always says 'trust your feelings' and then turns around and says 'don't be ruled by your feelings.' What's the truth?"

"That's true," Ahsoka says. "So what is the truth?"

"In my experience, the truth is different for everyone," Anakin says. "We can only find our personal truths and work with that."

* * *

Riyo's personal ship is a refurbished YT-1760. Personal, not diplomatic. Because there isn't an official purpose for the ship, it doesn't have to be sleek and gilded in white and silver like other diplomatic ships are. Instead, it's worn in with use, and under Magnus' and Riyo's combined efforts, it's also lovingly tended to.

Droids are already scurrying around the take-off platform. They fuel it up, conduct last-minute systems checks, and make little nuisances of themselves, as some droids do.

Magnus steps onto the ship's entrance ramp with an old, military duffle bag, looking very different in a henley shirt, work pants and scuffed boots. His head is uncovered, revealing salt and peppered hair, and his shirt sleeves are rolled up to his elbows, revealing full tattoo sleeves on both arms.

Ahsoka and Riyo wave to him from further away on the platform. Riyo's bag isn't that much bigger than Magnus', and compared to the both of them, Ahsoka's backpack is rather…light. Really, it's only full of warm clothes and a thick winter parka.

R7's head spins in excitement as he rolls up the ramp, chattering. Magnus must step back to keep his toes from getting crushed.

"Magnus," Riyo whispers when they get close enough.

"Riyo, Ahsoka." Magnus nods at the both of them. "That droid's an eager one, isn't he?"

"He really likes to fly," Ahsoka says.

"Shall we?" Magnus asks, and they enter the ship. The inside of the ship is much the same as the outside; clean, if also worn and cared for. R7's chatter echoes down the corridor from the cockpit. The entrance ramp opens up into the lounge. Ahsoka hesitates.

"Galley to the right," Magnus calls out from behind her. "The four doors just in front of you lead to three cabins and the refresher. Go ahead and take one."

"Okay." Ahsoka opens one of the doors to find an empty cabin. It's a double bunk, and she places her backpack on the bottom one. The closet has two sets of bedding and pillows that are sealed in thin, plastic cases against the mites and moths. She unzips a set and pulls the sheets out, letting the case fall to the floor.

The blankets smell stale, but they're clean and warm, which is already a lot better than the sets she's found on other ships. Those are sometimes eaten through, or haven't been washed by maintenance. Ahsoka makes her bed and stashes the plastic case back in the closet. When she emerges from her cabin, she finds Riyo and Magnus already in the cockpit.

"Do you need me to be co-pilot?" Riyo asks. Magnus, who is already going through pre-flight systems checks, must turn around and ask her to repeat herself so that he can read her lips.

"Go rest, girl!" Magnus says, incredulous. "The droid and I are more than enough to handle this ship."

R7's manipulators emerge and he gives a smart salute.

"I didn't know you could pilot a ship," Ahsoka says. Riyo shakes her head and goes into the galley to make herself some tea.

"I can only do basic maneuvers. Just enough to get myself to safety should the situation call for it. Magnus made sure I at least knew that much."

The entryway ramp groans as it's shut, signaling Magnus' readiness to take off so the two of them sit in the lounge. They can still hear the sounds from the cockpit as Magnus hails the nearest control tower.

"Control, please come in," Magnus says into a little headset. "This is the Rose Bride requesting permission for launch. Do you copy?"

"We copy, Rose Bride, this is Control." The control tower comes through the comlink in the dashboard. "You are clear for launch. Have a good trip."

The ship shudders as it leaves the landing pad, but settles as Magnus flies it to the edge of the Coruscant atmosphere and into the inky darkness of space.

"Alum, was it?" Magnus shouts back to Asoka.

"Ilum," Ahsoka says. "R7 should know the coordinates."

R7 beeps and plugs into the port in the side of the cockpit in order to program the navicomputer. A minute later, Magnus activates the hyperdrive and they shoot into light speed. Riyo and Ahsoka talk in the lounge for a little while before Riyo inevitably falls asleep from the tea. Ahsoka gently plucks the mug from Riyo's hands with the Force and sets it on the table before them. Magnus emerges from the cockpit and sits on Riyo's other side. When he sees that she's sleeping, he just blinks and looks at Ahsoka.

"That's a fine droid you've got," he says in a low voice so he doesn't disturb Riyo. "Told me I could scram until we reach Ilum in seven hours. Told him to call for me if there's trouble."

"He's very heroic," Ahsoka says. She ignores R7's beeps telling them how he can still hear them.

"He's not the only one I'm happy to have aboard," Magnus says. "Riyo might not say it either, but she's glad to have you around too."

"Thank you," Ahsoka says. There's a saying among the Togruta: Togruta don't do well in isolation. It reminds Ahsoka of the time when she and Master Shaak Ti took younglings to a Togruta festival and while the younglings immersed themselves at a craft booth weaving baskets, she and Shaak talked about their respective attempts of trying and failing to learn Togruti and swapped Akul hunting stories.

Now, Ahsoka won't be able to talk to Master Shaak Ti again.

"Ahsoka?" Magnus asks. "Are you alright? If you're tired, you're free to sleep."

"I'm okay," Ahsoka says, then, eager for a distraction, she asks, "what do your tattoos mean? Riyo told me about hers."

"She did, eh?" Magnus holds out his two forearms and looks at them. "I know you don't mean any harm by it, but be warned: that's a very personal question you just asked."

"Really? I'm sorry," Ahsoka says. Magnus grunts.

"It's all right. Just keep it in mind for the future." There's a jagged design on the outside of both of Magnus' arms and he traces one with a fingertip. "Both my mother and father come from reindeer herding clans. Rival clans. That's how they met. These shapes here that look like lightning? Those are reindeer antlers."

"That's pretty cool," Ahsoka says. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Magnus gives her a rare smile. "Your facial markings, those are natural, right?"

Ahsoka nods and smoothes her knuckles over her cheek. "They're camouflage, for hiding in tall grass. I guess you could say they're marks from my ancestors too. My people are hunters. Predators; I think that's what the science holoshows call us. There's a lot of traits left over from that."

* * *

Seven hours is a long time to be aboard a ship. Even one that's traveling at light-speed. Ahsoka eventually retires to her cabin and meditates. It's easy for her mind to empty while she's sitting alone in the darkened cabin, where the only sounds are her breathing and the hum of the ship's engines.

Ahsoka breathes in. Out. Yesterday, (was it really yesterday?) she told Anakin that the Council could eat their condemnation of her. That if they couldn't trust her, then how could she trust herself? Today though, she breathes out her anger and basks in the remaining peace, and she finds that she would still turn down the Council's offer to come back. The Jedi Order have always dedicated their lives to the Force. To Justice. To Peace. But they put the Republic before the Force. They tried to protect their reputation before seeking justice for her. It's…wrong. Ahsoka wonders if she sees this now only because she's so removed from the situation. She's reminded of Barriss' speech in the courtroom.

Barriss. Force, must that girl keep coming up? But she was right in a way. Partially. The Jedi have lost their way. Ahsoka sighs. Even if Barriss was right, that's not the point. There's no way Ahsoka can go back to the Jedi Order while they still serve the Republic, or while they still answer to the Supreme Chancellor. Maybe in the future, when this war is finally over, she and Master Yoda could talk about things.

Ahsoka opens her eyes. She changes her clothes in the dark and gets into bed.

She dreams of fire.

The Jedi Temple burns once more and Ahsoka is running through the smoky halls and rooms, looking for survivors.

"Hello?" she shouts. "Anyone?"

There are screams everywhere, but Ahsoka doesn't see anyone. The bodies that scatter the temple are faceless and bloody. Ahsoka prays that she doesn't find Anakin here and in her praying, she trips head over heels down a flight of stairs into a gaping abyss.

While Ahsoka falls, she's surrounded by images and sounds and sensations. Ships explode. Senate pods crash to the floor. Padmé screams in anguish.

Wait a minute. Ahsoka focuses in on Padmé and gets this itchy, anxious feeling about this vision that has nothing to do with its content. She reaches out to it and wakes up mentally holding her Force bond with Anakin.

* * *

Note Bene: Force powers are severely limited in the 2008 Clone Wars series. For the purposes of this story, I'm going to be working with the over-the-top Force powers depicted in the 2003 Clone Wars series, where Force-users are the forces of nature they should be.

How many wlw ships can I reference in a single story? I don't know, let's find out. There's already references in earlier chapters.

I like to think that Riyo can throw a decent punch, but since she's a tiny person, that'll only get her so far.

What else happened this chapter? Action! Yes! I finally get to write some action scenes! It was short in this chapter, but I'm just getting started.

Thanks for reading! Please leave feedback.


	7. Crystal

Ahsoka shoots the equivalent of a bucket of cold water down the Force bond. When she feels Anakin gasping awake she sends a comlink, nowmessage too and fumbles through her gear until she finds the hologram comlink that's attached to her gauntlet. She calls Anakin and yawns as she waits for him to pick up.

"Ugh," Ahsoka groans. She winces and closes her eyes against the bright light of Anakin's hologram.

"Ah…Ahsoka?" Anakin asks, just as groggy as she is. His voice is still thick with sleep.

"Uh, what…what the hell was all that?" Ahsoka asks. "You're sending me visions now?"

"Oh no." Anakin pinches the bridge of his nose. "I'm sorry, Snips. I didn't mean to send you that."

"I think you owe me some answers," Ahsoka says. Anakin looks blearily up at her. "What's going on?"

"It's complicated."

"And I'm a smart girl. Master, let me help you."

The both of them stare at each other for a long moment, each thinking that it's too damn early for this kind of thing. Anakin sighs.

"Padmé told you of our marriage, right?"

"Yeah. Congratulations," Ahsoka says. Anakin gives her a brief, tired smile.

"She's pregnant."

"Okay that, I didn't know." Ahsoka leaps up, joy spreading across her face. "More congratulations, Skyguy!"

"Thanks, but," Anakin's chuckle dissolves into a frown and he says, "I've been having visions about her dying. She's crying and screaming and in pain. I don't wanna lose another person, Snips. I can't lose Padmé, I don't think I could stand it."

"It'll be okay," Ahsoka says. "As for the vision, is Padmé in childbirth? I hear that's supposed to be painful."

"Yeah, and she says that she'll be fine, but I can't help but worry."

"Have you talked to her about any this?"

"Not yet," Anakin says, looking guilty.

"I don't understand, Padmé's your wife. Aren't married people supposed to talk to each other?"

"That's what I've heard too," Anakin says, as dry as Tatooine.

"Although," Ahsoka pauses to gather her thoughts. "The last time I had visions of Padmé in danger, it was because of an assassin."

Anakin gapes. "But my visions were of her dying in childbirth!"

"It could be induced labor because of an assassination attempt. Senator Onaconda was poisoned, remember? And I don't mean to be scary, but pregnant women are kind of easy targets."

"Hmm." Anakin strokes his chin in thought. "That's a good point. Padmé's finds herself in danger a lot and it wouldn't stop just because of her condition. I'll have to talk to her about what we should do. Thanks, Ahsoka."

"No problem, Master."

"Now, let's talk about your visions."

"Huh?"

"Force bonds are two-way streets, remember? You got some of mine and I got some of yours."

Ahsoka sighs. "I've had the most terrible vision. It was about the Jedi Temple. There was smoke and fire."

"That doesn't sound like the Jedi Temple."

"This is the second time I've had this vision. I think it means something."

"You might be right. I'll bring it up to the Council and see if anything can be done. Let me know if you see other visions too, okay?"

"Yeah. And I could tell you the same thing. Do you think going to the Council will even work?"

"It should. I'm on the Council now."

"Get out!" Ahsoka grins. "You're a nerd now, Skyguy!"

"Hey, that's Master Nerd to you, Snips. But it's strange."

"What's strange?"

"They didn't give me the rank of Master. And they want me to spy on the Chancellor."

"I'm sorry," Ahsoka says. If she had stayed and become a Jedi Knight, Anakin would have been eligible to become a Master.

"Don't worry about it."

"If it helps, it does sound like something the Council would do. What are you going to do about the Chancellor?"

"I don't know yet, but I'm starting to see what you meant by not having the Council trust you."

"It's not a good feeling."

"It's not." Anakin sighs and rubs his face. "Hmm. Before I forget, nice shirt."

"This?" Ahsoka picks at the collar of her oversized t-shirt. "Oh no, it's Riyo's. Shut up."

Anakin doesn't bother hiding his grin. "I didn't say anything."

* * *

R7 landed the ship right on the temple doorstep. Magnus sits halfway down the open entry ramp, absolutely at ease in the raging blizzard outside. He pulls a beanie over his ears and short hair against the wind and pulls a cigarette and lighter from his pocket.

Riyo stands next to him on the ramp, a blanket around her shoulders. She gathers her long, light purple hair in her hands and quickly braids it to keep it from flying everywhere in the storm.

"We're standing on the edge of the galaxy," Riyo whispers. Magnus lights up beside her. "If we could see it—we can't because of the blizzard—but if we could, we'd see it arc across the sky." Riyo gestures straight up. "A stream of stars, like grains of sand. Shame we can't see it."

"It'd look like the sky on Pantora, then." Magnus takes a drag. The lit tip of his cigarette is a beacon in the dark. When he exhales, the wind whips the smoke away. "Different, 'cause of the angle, but similar."

"That's true."

Magnus offers Riyo the cigarette, but she shakes her head.

"Good," he says. "Never start. It's a waste of credits."

"So you do it because you hate money?"

"I do it because I'm old and my lungs have had their fun," Magnus says. He holds the cigarette away and flicks off the ash at the end. "Nah, it passed the time while I was in the trench. Too late to stop now."

"Do all soldiers smoke?"

"All of them my age. Don't know about Titon's generation though. Might be different for those boys."

The two of them fall into a moment of silence while Magnus takes another drag.

"You still love that girl, Riyo," Magnus says. It's not a question, and they both immediately know who he's talking about. "Even now, after all this time. It's plain as the tats on your face."

"I'm doing all this for her because she deserves better, not because she'll owe me," Riyo whispers. "It's the right thing to do."

"I'm going to watch you break your own heart into pieces, aren't I?"

Riyo gives him a sad smile. "I'll be fine. And when that happens then we'll deal with it then."

"Mmm." But Magnus doesn't sound all that convinced.

"Do you think that maybe you can take me on a Snow Walk while we're on Pantora? I've never been on one before." Riyo asks. Magnus warily looks up at her.

"A young woman's first Snow Walk should be with her father."

"I know. That's why I'm asking you."

Magnus seems thrown, and his usual pokerface melts away into open wonder.

"I'd be honored," he says. Pretty soon, the two of them are grinning at each other like a couple of idiots.

"Hah!" Magnus allows himself a small chuckle. "Wait 'till the lads hear about this."

R7 sets himself just at the top of the ramp, his joints and servos rattling against each other from the cold. He oohs at Ahsoka, who pulls her parka over her head and lets it drape over her body. Riyo clears her throat and Magnus's usual passive expression settles back over his face.

"You got us really close," Ahsoka says to the droid. Just beyond the end of the ramp, half-hidden in the gloom, is the frozen pad that marks the entrance of the Jedi Temple.

Too late, Ahsoka asks herself if she should even be here. What is she hoping to find here anyway?

Riyo finishes braiding her hair and ties off the end with a band. She turns to Ahsoka and finds her staring out at the pad.

"Ahsoka?" she asks. "What's wrong?"

"I shouldn't be here," Ahsoka says. "I'm not a Jedi anymore."

"In my experience, the instant the Gods abandon you, you die." Behind Riyo, Magnus gives a vague grunt of agreement. She weighs Ahsoka's hands in hers and continues. "You're still here, Ahsoka. The Force can't have abandoned you yet, so don't you turn your back on It."

"Okay. Right. You're right."

Riyo gives Ahsoka's hands one last squeeze before she lets go. Ahsoka straightens up, takes a deep breath, and walks past her to the pad.

One last visit then. One last pilgrimage to a Temple so that she can say goodbye. The pad is firm and smooth under her boots, much different than the give of snow. Ahsoka lets the Force well up in her body, and it burgeons within her as if water behind a dam. She reaches up and unleashes it all on the great rocky wall that protects the Temple of Ilum.

The wall is hundreds of feet tall, rivaling the height of some Coruscanti skyscrapers, and it's more than a dozen feet thick. One padawan couldn't move it, and several padawan could barely get it to budge, but a Force-wielder who commands the power equivalent to a Jedi Knight's, the kind of power that Ahsoka now brings to bear on the great wall, that makes it groan and shift and slide down in a great cloud of frost, revealing the entrance of the temple.

Magnus's cigarette falls from his lips and bounces apart on the ramp. Riyo pulls her blanket tighter around herself and covers her mouth with a hand.

"I'll be back soon," Ahsoka shouts over the wind at them so that they can hear her. She waves, then trudges across the snow into the temple.

* * *

The temple is just as impressive as Ahsoka remembers, a veritable cathedral to the Light Side of the Force. Somehow, even though the door is opened, the howling wind outside is muted and instead, what echoes around the temple is the sound of Ahsoka's breath and the crunch of ice under her boots.

There's an elaborate sunlight-catching device built into the ceiling of the temple, but sunrise won't be for a few days yet. Ahsoka will just have to get through the thick sheet of ice in some other way. If she should break in. She closes her eyes and reaches out to the Force and while It doesn't seem to regard her as a trespasser, It still feels a little…off, like It's not sure what to make of her. Since It doesn't seem to reject her outright, however, she decides to stay.

She makes her way up the steps to the ice, which is almost clear enough to be mistaken for glass. She inhales, drops into a stance, and throws a combination of punches.

CRACK CRACK CRUNCH. Ahsoka's punches are bolstered by the power of the Force, and the thick ice wall splinters and breaks under the attack. Chunks of ice scatter over the temple floor and after a few more combinations, she's made a hole big enough for her to slip through. Ahsoka climbs through and drops catlike on her feet on the other side. When she straightens up, she finds herself in a dark, freezing cave. She walks deeper into the cave, looking for that tell-tale glimmer of light from a crystal. After a few minutes of this, she's startled by a noise behind her.

"Tano," someone says. Ahsoka whirls around to see Asajj Ventress.

"You!" she shouts. Asajj sniffs.

"Rude. I thought we were acquaintances at the very least. And you still owe me a pardon, by the way."

"Oh. Right."

"You didn't talk to the Jedi yet?"

"I quit the Jedi Order."

Asajj stares. "Huh. What the hell are you doing in here then?"

"Me? I should be asking you that question! How did you even find this place?" Ahsoka asks. Asajj stares down at her. "Right, Count Dooku was once a Jedi too."

"Sounds like you have a brain after all." Asajj steps past Ahsoka and leads the way deeper into the cave. "You should use it more often."

Asajj's verbal jabs roll off of Ahsoka like water off a Gungan's back. "Why are you here?" she asks.

The bridge of Asajj's nose wrinkles, as if she's smelled something awful. "Because I got mugged by your friend, Offee, and now I'm in need of a lightsaber." The two of them come to a fork in the cave and they stop. "Or did you forget that I got punished for helping you out?"

Ahsoka winces. "Sorry. A lot of things have happened since then."

"So you said. And you're having trouble adapting."

"How…how did you know?"

"Because you're like me."

Ahsoka recoils. "How are we anything alike?"

"First off, you can stop being so insulting, brat. Second, the both of us have been betrayed and abandoned by our respective masters. I've been exactly where you are and I know just how poodoo it really is."

"You have a point."

"Let me ask you something before you run off and get lost in this forsaken place. I'm not a Sith anymore, but does that make me a Jedi?"

"Oh wow, no. No it doesn't."

"Don't worry, Tano," Asajj says dryly, "the feeling is mutual. Next question: you're not a Jedi anymore; does that make you a Sith?"

Ahsoka opens her mouth, but nothing comes out.

"Try not to hurt yourself over that," Asajj says. She smirks and saunters down one of the paths, disappearing from sight. Ahsoka grips the front of her parka, and can't help but think of the last time she saw Mechanic. She goes down the other end of the fork and keeps looking. She ignores the tiny feeling at the back of her head, like she's forgetting something.

"Ahsoka?" someone rasps behind her. Ahsoka turns to find Riyo, stumbling into view from around the bend. "Oof!"

"Riyo!" Ahsoka goes to her and steadies her. "What are you doing in here?"

"I just…you were taking a while, so I came in to check on you," Riyo whispers. "I saw the hole you made. Am I not supposed to be here? I'm sorry."

"No, actually, that's…okay. You're okay." Ahsoka thinks about Asajj wandering around in the other part of the cave and wonders who the hell else is in here. "Apparently, this is the place to be tonight. Just stick close to me, okay?"

"Of course." Riyo sounds incredibly relieved and Ahsoka doesn't blame her. These caves are spooky and dark.

Ahsoka and Riyo fall into step with each other, and as they walk, Riyo's hand curls around Ahsoka's arm so that she won't lose her.

"Aren't Jedi Caves supposed to be filled with crystals?" Riyo asks.

"Well, these caves are full of crystals," Ahsoka says, "but a person can only see the ones that are meant for them."

"So that's why I can't see any? That makes me feel better."

"The first time I came here, I was worried that I wouldn't see anything either. Like what if I didn't get any crystal at all, and then what kind of Jedi would I be?"

"But you found one."

"Yeah." But would she find one this time? Ahsoka reaches out to the Force once again, and finds It still distant and cold, but It watches her closely.

They turn with the bend and come out into an extravagant, shining cavern. The floor is as smooth as the surface of a frozen pond, and stalactites hang from the high ceiling. Riyo gasps and steps out to the middle of the floor, careful not to slip.

"It's beautiful," she whispers.

"Yeah." An easy smile spreads over Ahsoka's face as she watches Riyo gawk, glad that at least one of them is enjoying their trip in these caves. She steps out to join her.

"Do you see any crystals in here?" Riyo asks. Ahsoka looks around and frowns.

"Unfortunately, no, just reflections and stuff. It looks like there's another way out there though." Ahsoka points at another few tunnels on the other side of the cavern. "It might be in one of those."

"Ahsoka. Riyo." Both of them freeze and turn to find Barriss Offee, clad in dark robes and blocking the way they came before. Ahsoka's eyes narrow and she steps in front of Riyo, shielding her.

"What are you doing here?" Ahsoka asks. It seems she's been asking that a lot today.

"Waiting for you, of course," Barriss says. "I knew it was only a matter of time before you showed up in this place, lightsaber-less as you are."

"But you were arrested. You're awaiting trial."

A wrinkle of disappointment appears between Barriss's brows. "You really thought a Republic prison could hold me? You should know better than that, Ahsoka."

"What do you want from me?" Ahsoka asks.

Barriss reaches out to her. "Come with me."

For one instant, Ahsoka's overcome with a profound sense of loss. She stares at the thin hand, then looks back up at her former friend. "No, Barriss."

Barriss frowns. "Can't, or won't?"

"Either. Both. You can choose."

Barriss's hand falls to her side and she closes her eyes. "I had hoped," she whispers, but doesn't finish her thought. When she next opens her eyes, her gaze is iron. Her stolen lightsabers fly into her palms and they ignite in angry beams of red.

SHVOOM.

Riyo gasps and Ahsoka turns to her.

"Run!"

"Where to?"

"Away from here!" Ahsoka hisses. Riyo takes off, leaving Ahsoka free to focus on Barriss.

"I am offering you something better than anything the Jedi Council could ever give you," Barriss says. The lightsabers cast shadows on her face.

"I'm not…you're Sith! I'm not Sith," Ahsoka says. Disbelief flickers through Barriss's eyes.

"You sure about that?" she asks. She looks past Ahsoka to where Riyo went. "Maybe you just need some persuasion?"

"Nope!" Ahsoka pushes with the Force and Barriss slides back over the stone floor. In order to keep her footing, she jabs the tips of the lightsabers into the floor, making the ice hiss as it evaporates and leaving furrows of melted stone.

CRACK. Ahsoka reaches up and breaks off the oversized stalactites from the ceiling with the Force, then throws them at Barriss. Barriss slices through the ice and rock with a few expert strokes and sends the pieces back at Ahsoka.

Ahsoka banishes what she can, and dodges what she can't. Her movements are minimalistic, letting shards of ice and stone whistle past her head to smash against the wall behind her. She falls into a rhythm. Banish, dodge, push. Banish, dodge, push. It's not going to defeat Barriss at all, but Ahsoka's not going to win unless Barriss makes a mistake, and if she's right, Barriss has been short on patience lately.

"Enough!" Barriss shouts, and Ahsoka sees her chance. She inhales, takes a step, and sends a Force uppercut into Barriss's jaw. Barriss's head snaps back and the lightsabers fall from her hands. She staggers, but remains upright. When she recovers, she's alone in the cavern.

Ahsoka is running through the caves as fast as she can. Always faster. She cannot run fast enough.

"Riyo?" she calls. "Riyo! Oof!" She turns the corner and runs into someone.

"Ahsoka! Whoa!" Riyo grips Ahsoka's arms to keep herself from sprawling onto the ground. When they collided, Riyo just bounced off of Ahsoka as if she weighed nothing.

"You haven't left?" Ahsoka asks.

"I tried! This place is like a maze," Riyo whispers.

"AHSOKA!" Barriss's scream echoes through the cave.

"Go!" Ahsoka says. "Go, go, go!"

They run and judging from the sounds of slashing lightsabers and rage, Barriss is not far behind them. The caves twist and turn and drop out from under their feet. They slide down a steep incline on loose pebbles and when they reach the bottom, Ahsoka pulls Riyo into a deep alcove off to the side. Ahsoka eases her breathing, pulls back on her presence in the Force, and places a hand over Riyo's mouth. Riyo's trembling, and she grips Ahsoka's arm as if a drowning person on a life line.

A couple seconds later, Barriss slides down the rocky ramp, her lightsabers at the ready. She's breathing heavily, and her yellow eyes burn in the darkness.

"Ahsoka?" Barriss shouts again. When she gets no answer, she huffs and walks away. The sound of her footsteps fade and Ahsoka drops her hand from Riyo's mouth.

"Oh Gods." Riyo covers her eyes with a trembling hand. "What-uh…what now?"

"We have to get out of here," Ahsoka says.

"But you haven't found your crystal yet."

"I'll figure something out."

CRACK. The alcove they're sitting in splinters and falls apart. Dust and fragments of stone fall on them as layers of the ceiling caves in.

"Hurk!" Riyo folds in on herself and grasps at her throat. She's lifted off her feet and she shoots through the ceiling, which has become thin enough for her to break through without snapping her neck.

"Riyo!" Ahsoka raises her arms to block out the newest shower of stone and dust, then launches herself through the hole left behind.

She finds herself back in the cavern, now ruined by her fight with Barriss. Debris is scattered everywhere, great chunks of stone are smashed into the ground, sending great cracks running through it. Riyo lies on the ground at Barriss's feet, dazed, and Barriss herself has put away her lightsabers and watches Riyo with mild interest. The hood of her cloak is up.

"Mild concussion," Barriss mutters to herself. Then, upon noticing Ahsoka, says louder, "she's got a concussion." Riyo tries to get to her feet, but as soon as she rights herself, she tilts to the side and topples over again.

"Barriss!" Ahsoka pulls herself out of the hole and straightens up, doing a very good job of concealing the rising tide of panic in her body. "Leave her alone."

"Ahsoka?" Riyo calls, her voice cracking. Her consonants are slurred. "Help!"

Barriss whips out a hand and throws a black ball at Ahsoka. Ahsoka raises her hands to swat them away with her bare palms, but it explodes, revealing a net made up of thick ropes. She tries to run, but it's too late, the net ensnares her and swoops her off her feet. Ahsoka falls hard on the ground.

"Barriss! Ah!" Ahsoka struggles against the net, only for it to electrocute her. "No! Don't do this."

Barriss stands over Riyo and ignites a lightsaber, making Riyo flinch.

"Ahsoka!"

"Rrrgh!" Ahsoka powers through the electricity in order and tries to lift the net off of her with the Force, then tries to Force Push Barriss away, but it's not working. The Force, who has been a quiet witness all this time, must have found Ahsoka lacking and has finally abandoned her. Ahsoka loses control of her body for a few seconds and she stops struggling.

"Take me instead," Ahsoka shouts.

"I intend to," Barriss says. "But your soul will not save the Senator's."

"Barriss!" Ahsoka struggles against the net once more, and is electrocuted long enough to start smoking. She even gnaws at a rope with her sharp teeth, but it holds firm. She can't do it.

She can't do it.

She must have broadcasted that thought, because Barriss scoffs and says, "a Sith could do it, but you're not Sith, are you?"

A long stream of Mando'a curses fall from Ahsoka's mouth before she slows to a stop, sick with realization.

"I'm sorry, Riyo," Ahsoka whispers, then louder, "I'm so sorry. Just look at me! Just look at me, okay?"

Riyo looks with unfocused eyes. She's shaking so hard, and Ahsoka's heart clenches in desperation.

"Best to do it like taking off a Bacta patch then." Barriss lunges and stabs through Riyo's chest.

"No!" Ahsoka shouts. Riyo reaches up, as if to touch the lightsaber blade, then goes limp. Her head lolls to the side, her eyes closed.

Barriss stomps on the ice, splintering it into large pieces and revealing that part of the cavern floor to really be the surface of a lake. She steps back from Riyo and with a wave of her hand, the piece that she lies on flips over, dunking her body into the water and trapping her underneath. Barriss flicks her wrist and lifts the net off of Ahsoka, freeing her.

"Riyo!" Ahsoka runs over to the upturned ice floe, which is already freezing back into place. The ice is too thick to see through and she can't see clearly through her tears. "No, no, no. Please, no. Don't do this to me." She kneels and presses her palms to the surface, but can't seem to break it.

Ahsoka looks up at the dark hooded figure watching from a distance, and rage wells up, hot and feverish in her chest.

"SHE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING TO YOU!"

"Are you sure you're not Sith?"

"WHAT DOES THAT HAVE TO DO WITH THIS?"

"Look." Barriss gestures to the cavern around them. The walls shake from the sheer amount of Force that Ahsoka oozes, creating an ominous rumbling. "How glorious. It would be so easy for you."

She takes off her hood, revealing Sithsoka.

"Boo," Sithsoka says. Ahsoka gasps and falls back. Her rage vanishes into confusion, and the cavern eases into silence. She blinks, and the floor returns to its pristine state. The stalactites that she and Barriss were throwing at each other earlier hang once more from the ceiling. There is no hole in the floor and there is no net. Even the furrows that Barriss carved into the floor with her lightsabers have been smoothed over.

"Everything I've seen in here were visions?" Ahsoka asks, still in shock. "Everyone I've seen in here isn't really in here?"

"Did you honestly think that getting your crystal this time around would be as easy as the last time?" Sithsoka asks. "You don't even know if you deserve one."

"N-no. I guess not." Ahsoka says. Exhaustion seeps into her bones and she sits cross-legged on the floor. She sobs. She cries and cries, purging herself of all the fear and tension she's been carrying. She cries out of relief because Riyo isn't dead, but she also cries because she's just seen Riyo die and Force, that's messed up. And the person who was under the hood after all….

Ahsoka grabs a stone off the floor and throws it at Sithsoka, who ducks.

"Whoa!"

"How could you do that to her?" Ahsoka shouts, her teeth clenched and her face still marked by tear tracks. She picks up a couple more stones, but Sithsoka raises her hands in a pacifying gesture.

"Hey, you might see me while we're here in the caves, but I'm still you. You're talking to yourself."

"I would never do that to her," Ahsoka says. "I love her!"

Sithsoka draws back in surprise and Ahsoka pauses as she realizes what she's just said.

"I…." Ahsoka trails off as she thinks. Years of Jedi training can't protect her from the deluge of images that bombard her now. Riyo, when faced with a problem, opens her mouth and proves herself to be thinking in six different directions. Riyo smells like soap and fresh laundry and when she lets her light purple hair down, it cascades down her back and Ahsoka must always quell the urge to run her hands through it. She must resist,because Force, it would seem like such the greatest indulgence and Jedi don't indulge.

"Oh Force, I love Riyo," Ahsoka whispers in awe. She absently wipes her face on her sleeve.

"Really?" Sithsoka asks, unimpressed. "Just like that?"

But Ahsoka doesn't answer, still lost in thought. She takes a shaky breath and looks down where she's seen Riyo fall under the ice. She reminds herself that it was just a vision and she thinks about her other visions about the Jedi Temple on Coruscant.

When she finally looks back up at Sithsoka, it's with the hard, searching gaze of someone who has run out of patience, but is too tired to care.

"Go away," Ahsoka says, weary. "I'm done with you."

Sithsoka shrugs and walks out of the cavern. When Ahsoka's sure that she's gone, she closes her eyes to meditate.

"Welcome back."

Ahsoka finds herself in the machine shop again. All the overhead lights are on, and the machines are fixed and ready. All the tools and parts are put away in chests and bins. Raw materials are racked on the wall and even the concrete floor has been resurfaced.

Before her sits Mechanic, who rests her chin on her hand and watches Ahsoka with a soft smile. She looks as exhausted as Ahsoka feels.

"Whoa." Ahsoka gapes as she looks around. "You did all this?"

Mechanic chuckles. "You did! With all the meditation and the whole trip into the temple. That's what happens when you figure things out."

"Wow." Ahsoka's floored.

"I knew you could do it," Mechanic says with a fond smile. Ahsoka's eyes narrow.

"Who are you?"

A mischievous glint shines in Mechanic's eye.

"I'm you," she says, but Ahsoka shakes her head a little. "Not this time. Not while I'm in this temple. What else are you?"

"Well, I'm not sure of what to do with you, that's what I am." Mechanic leans back in her seat and regards Ahsoka with open curiosity. "You're not Jedi."

"I may not be a part of the Order anymore, but I still feel like a Jedi. I don't need permission from the Council to be a good person."

"And yet you have broken into this temple for a kyber crystal." Mechanic spreads her arms wide. Ahsoka ducks her head in shame.

"Old habits die hard."

"This is true. Why should I give you a crystal? I have shown you your worst fears and your reaction was both great and terrible. How am I to know that you will not abuse these gifts should I give them to you?"

Ahsoka thinks it over for a second. "I know I'm not really supposed to be in this temple. I'm not a part of the Order; I'm me, and I can only do my best and hope that it's enough. And yeah, you showed me some awful things today, but you also showed me visions of the Jedi Temple on fire! I don't know how exactly I can help, but I'm going to do something, and I can't do that without a lightsaber. So if you could just please…."

"Please," Mechanic echoes softly, mulling it over. "You know this means you'll have to work harder, right?"

"It'll be worth it," Ahsoka says, and at that, Mechanic gives her a soft smile and holds her hands out to Ahsoka.

"What'cha got there?"

Ahsoka realizes that she's still holding the two stones that she picked up in the cavern. They're smooth and gray, and fit in her palms. She gives them to Mechanic and watches her place them on the tabletop between them. Mechanic hums and pulls her goggles down over her eyes, then hefts a hammer.

"Ready?" she asks. She lifts the hammer high, and brings it down on the stones.

CRACK.

Ahsoka's startled from her meditation when the stones in her hands crumble apart. The pieces fall into her lap, revealing two greenish kyber crystals.

* * *

Magnus has gone through two more cigarettes by the time Ahsoka emerges from the temple. He and Riyo don't notice her at first, too engrossed in a conversation about what actually happens on a Snow Walk, but they notice the unearthly groan that the stone slabs make as Ahsoka raises them back up over the entrance of the temple. Riyo stands and brushes the dust off of the seat of her pants.

"How'd you do, Ahsoka?" Magnus calls out for her. Ahsoka reaches into her parka, pulls out a small leather bag, and holds it triumphantly above her head.

"She did it," Riyo whispers. Magnus slowly gets to his feet and stretches, making his bones pop as they click back into place.

"Was there ever any doubt?" Magnus claps Riyo on the shoulder before he goes back into the ship. "Come on, R7. Let's get this ship back into space, eh?"

Ahsoka walks up the ramp and stops right before Riyo. Her eyes are red and haunted, as if she's swam to the bottom of the ocean and back.

"What's wrong? Have you been crying?" Riyo asks. Ahsoka pulls her into a tight hug and she reaches up to hug her back.

"I'm right here," Riyo whispers. She rubs comforting circles on Ahsoka's back and wonders what in the galaxy happened in that temple.

When Ahsoka pulls away, her hands linger on Riyo's shoulders.

"We need to talk," Ahsoka says, and she steps around Riyo to go further into the ship, leaving her on the ramp.

* * *

The ship flies once more through hyperspace, only this time their destination is Pantora. Magnus, who has somehow sensed the tension between the two young women since Ahsoka came back, shuts himself in the cockpit with R7.

Ahsoka said that they needed to talk, but she looks so bone tired that Riyo almost wants to suggest postponing it until after she's had a nap. After she puts her parka away, she eases herself into the booth in the lounge and silently watches Riyo make a fresh batch of tea for the both of them. She accepts her mug with both hands and drinks half of her tea without a word, and watches Riyo over the brim of her mug.

When she finally sets her mug down on the table, she says, "you still love me."

Damn if it doesn't feel like a dagger in Riyo's heart. Riyo closes her eyes against the sudden wave of pain and humiliation, and braces herself for the impending fallout. Of course Ahsoka would want to talk about that. Riyo's been trying to act normal around her, but she must have failed somehow and now Ahsoka must need to tell her that she's been acting weird and needs to dial it back.

She opens her eyes again, but can only look at the mug in her hands. Ahsoka hasn't said anything else, as if expecting an answer. Well, Riyo got caught. There's nothing left but to be honest.

"Yes," Riyo whispers. Her heart beats near the speed of sound, so fast it could break. "Yes, I do."

Ahsoka pushes herself out of her seat and steps around the table to stand before Riyo, whose chest fills with dread. This is it. What else did she think would happen, really? She feels like such an idiot.

"Riyo, look at me," Ahsoka says, her voice full of incredible fondness, and Riyo looks up in confusion. Ahsoka doesn't look disgusted. Or disappointed. In fact, she might look like….

"Oh," Riyo whispers, her body flooding with cautious relief. For the life of her, she can't say anything else.

Ahsoka takes Riyo's face in her hands, leans down, and kisses her. Ahsoka's soft and warm against her mouth and she tastes like tea and salt. Riyo's hands descend onto Ahsoka's hips and tighten on her belt. For once, the thoughts in her head are silent, absolutely overwhelmed by what is happening.

When it finally ends, Riyo's eyes flutter open (when did she close them?) and she watches Ahsoka with astonishment. She pulls her in for another kiss. Ahsoka smiles into the kiss and swipes a thumb over Riyo's cheek, right over her tattoos.

R7 wolf-whistles behind them, and the both of them freeze, mortified.

Ahsoka turns to the droid. "R7!"

"Is it safe to come out yet?" Magnus calls from the cockpit. After R7 beeps his affirmative, Magnus peeks into the lounge.

"So it all worked out then? Aye, that's good."

"Oh Gods," Riyo mutters. She turns away to hide the brilliant shade of dark purple she's turning.

"Magnus," Ahsoka says in an even tone.

"Got a request for you two, if you don't mind."

"Sure."

"If you decide to fool around, can you keep it down? Ship's got thin walls."

Ahsoka's stripes darken and Riyo curls in on herself in mortification.

* * *

Note Bene: Our space girlfriends are actually girlfriends now. Yay! And it only took around 35k words to get here lol.

While writing this chapter, I realized that Ahsoka was sent to Anakin when she was 14 years-old, way past the cutoff age of 13. Despite all of her hard work, no one chose her, and it was only through Yoda that she was assigned to Anakin at all. That's gotta suck, and it might explain why she's so eager to prove herself in season 1.

Ahsoka's Ilum vision was cruel af and I enjoyed writing every single word of it. Just…here's some trippy-ass shit, readers! Wade in it. The visions were horrifying and even though I made you read it, I hope that you can still forgive me.

That said, writing this chapter was still emotionally exhausting, so goodnight. I'll see you readers next time.


	8. Let the Spectacle Astound You

YO READ THIS: Someone gets attacked in this chapter, so brace yourself, okay?

* * *

Ahsoka gasps as she wakes up, the lingering images of yet another vision of the Jedi Temple attack still playing before her eyes. For the last night in the ship, she's moved into Riyo's cabin and taken the top bunk. Ahsoka appreciates the Force, honest, but these visions are getting to be annoying. Ahsoka tsks and drapes her arm over her eyes. Can't the Force let her sleep uninterrupted for one night? Just one.

"Ahsoka?" Riyo whispers. "Are you awake?"

Ahsoka groans. "Did I wake you up? I'm sorry."

"You were saying things in your sleep." Riyo unfolds her legs over the side of her bunk and stands up so that she can check on Ahsoka. "Was it a nightm-oh."

Ahsoka blinks down at her. "What?"

"Your pupils are green."

The only source of light in the room is what leaks in through the crack under the door. It's enough for Riyo to barely make out the outline of Ahsoka's face, but Ahsoka can see Riyo just fine.

"Yeah, it's a Togruta thing," Ahsoka says. Ancient Togruta considered it proof of the soul, as all living creatures native to Shili have this reflective gleam in different hues. When the Togruta discovered space travel and joined the rest of the Galaxy, they came up with a new word to refer to sentient beings who didn't have this eye glow, which translates to lightless, or without light. Today, it's used to refer to non-Togruta off-worlders, and isn't used at all in polite company.

Ahsoka scoots over and pats the space next to her. "Come here."

Riyo climbs into the bunk. It's a tight squeeze, but Ahsoka drapes the blanket over them both and pulls Riyo in close to keep her from falling out. Riyo's hands curl around Ahsoka's shoulders and their legs get tangled up together. Cozy. Ahsoka feels the hold of the vision loosen as she relaxes into Riyo's arms.

"Do you usually have nightmares?" Riyo asks.

"I've been having visions," Ahsoka says, and she tells Riyo about them. She leaves out her visions from the Ilum Temple, because those visions are for her only, and she leaves out the part about Padmé being pregnant, because some secrets aren't hers to tell.

"But I don't think the Council's going to do anything about them, even if Anakin's a part of it now."

"Even if Anakin can't do anything about the Jedi Temple, then he can still do something about Padmé," Riyo whispers. "Is she really pregnant?"

"Wh-who told you that?"

"No one. I've suspected for a while now."

"How?"

"Padmé and I go to Senate functions all the time and she hasn't drank any alcohol in months, only water. That and she's been going to the doctor a lot lately. So I thought that she might be pregnant." Thankfully, Riyo doesn't ask who the father is, so Ahsoka doesn't tell her.

"That's amazing."

Riyo chuckles. "You may have the Force to tell you things, Master Jedi, but the rest of us must rely on our powers of observation." She kisses the corner of Ahsoka's mouth. "Go back to sleep."

* * *

Pantora is freezing, of course, but at least there is no blizzard. Magnus and Riyo simply don light jackets, pick up their bags and leave the ship. Ahsoka pulls on her parka, slings her backpack over one shoulder and follows them out.

She hits a wall of cold.

"K-kriff," she says. It's like walking into a freezer. She pauses in order to get used to the temperature, then continues out.

The landing pad is already populated with droids, modified to withstand the cold. Magnus and Riyo, however, are greeted by Che Amanwe Papanoida and her retinue.

"Senator, Captain," Che says. When Ahsoka joins them she nods at her too. "Miss Tano. Welcome to Pantora. My father wanted to give you these," here, she shuffles a package out from under her arm and produces a data card from the pocket of her dress. These, she gives to Riyo.

"The masks and your invitation." She smiles. "I'm glad you've decided to come to the Trickster's Ball after all, Senator."

"Thank you, Che." Riyo's voice is getting better, but it still sounds like she's gargled broken glass. Papanoida must have told Che what to expect, however, because she doesn't react. "I'll see you there."

The muscles in Magnus's jaw clench.

* * *

Riyo is so adamant about avoiding her extended family that she's gone as far as to rent her own apartment on Pantora. One that's far away from them, but not so far as to be insulting. Even though she isn't on her home planet very often, she can afford it, and the yearly rent for her Pantoran apartment is, by far, way cheaper than the yearly rent on her Coruscanti apartment.

This price discrepancy between outer systems and core systems is normal, by the way. In fact, Riyo's biggest expenditure is the rent for her Coruscanti apartment, and, while she enjoys her job in politics, she still can't wait to quit being a Senator so she can save money and start her own law firm in this system. She could call up a few of her former classmates from law school and see who's interested in being a partner. Gods know they've all talked about it enough.

Even though Riyo has the keycard for her apartments, Magnus also has copies, because every time they take a trip to one system from another, Magnus insists on entering her apartments first and making an initial sweep. He searches through his wallet now, looking for the correct keycard. Behind him, Riyo, Ahsoka, and R7 wait.

"Magnus," Riyo whispers, mindful of the way Ahsoka's teeth chatter.

"Yes, apologies." Magnus keeps searching through his wallet. "It's been a while."

Magnus finally opens the door and conducts his sweep. When it's safe, he lets the rest of them in. There's an open mudroom where everyone immediately takes off their shoes. Ahsoka follows suit, and hangs her parka on one of the hooks above the bench. Past the mudroom is the living room and kitchen. Unlike Riyo's Coruscanti apartment, which is poorly furbished (it took Ahsoka too long to realize that the coffee table was just a pane of glass set over a short crate), this place actually looks like some care went into it. It's neat and clean, for one. The thick curtains are pulled back to let in the sunlight, revealing relatively new furniture, including a couch draped in blankets and a wide holoscreen. Riyo puts the package and the invitation on the kitchen table.

"Where's the refresher?" Ahsoka asks. Riyo points down the hallway.

"First door on your left."

When Ahsoka comes back, she finds Riyo and Magnus in the middle of a heated discussion.

"…Can't not go," Riyo whispers. "That would be incredibly rude."

"You're still not going," Magnus says. "It's too dangerous."

"Security at the Trickster's Ball is impeccable and you know it."

"It's not just the danger of assassination, Riyo. Things…happen, at these kinds of parties."

Riyo opens her mouth, then closes it. She gives Magnus that piercing gaze of hers, but he's immovable.

"What things? What is this really about, Magnus?"

"I've been to Trickster's Balls before," Magnus says, his voice tight and foreboding. Ahsoka's never heard him sound so intense before. "And I've seen many horrible things happen at them. And it would be painful for them to suddenly happen to you."

"What things?" Riyo asks, but by the look on her face and on Magnus's, they already know.

"You're not stupid, Riyo, but you can be naive and some young men will try to take advantage of that."

"I'm not…alright, you have a point. Different function, different risks," Riyo whispers. Magnus nods.

"I cannot be your protector at this ball. I've already been invited as a guest."

"Are plus-ones allowed at these things?" Ahsoka asks. "I'd like to go, but I'm not invited."

"You would?" Riyo asks. Her gold eyes light up at the mere sight of her. "Why, Ahsoka, would you like to escort me to the Trickster's Ball?"

"Would I! That sounds great, I'm in."

"Fantastic!" Riyo looks back up at Magnus, trying and failing to hide a grin. "Better?"

"Wait."

"Aw, let us go, Magnus," Ahsoka says. "Please?"

"Please?" Riyo says.

"Please?"

"Please?"

"Ah Gods." Magnus claps a hand over his eyes. "You're a bad influence, Ahsoka."

"The worst," Ahsoka says with a grin. The corners of Magnus's mouth twitch up.

"Alright, you can go."

"Yay!" Ahsoka says. Riyo finally cracks and laughs.

"Do not leave her side for a second," Magnus says.

"I won't," Ahsoka says. "I promise."

The doorbell rings and Magnus answers the door. It's Titon, still as handsome as ever, with his dark hair slicked back, sunglasses and leather jacket. After a couple of hugs and a strong handshake, they all find themselves sitting around the kitchen table with steaming mugs of tea.

"You've been on sabbatical, right?" Ahsoka says. "How's that going?"

"Great! It's actually ending next week, so I get to come back to work. Oh! And I got engaged."

"What?"

"Really?"

"Yeah! Here look." Titon pulls a smaller data pad out from the breast pocket of his jacket and brings up a picture of him with a Pantoran woman. He passes it to Ahsoka and turns to Magnus to tell him more of his fiancée.

His fiancée is very pretty, and she has familiar eyes and familiar hair. In fact, if it weren't for her facial tattoos, she'd pass convincingly for a different Pantoran woman. Riyo leans over to look over Ahsoka's shoulder at the data pad and Ahsoka turns to whisper in her ear.

"Why does she look like you though?"

Riyo gives Ahsoka a playful swat on her shoulder and leans back.

"Congratulations, Titon," she whispers and Titon's chest puffs with pride.

"Thanks, Senator."

They gossip and laugh until the mugs are empty of tea, and Magnus claps Titon on the shoulder and suggests they discuss the future of his career over drinks.

"Really?" Titon looks a lot like how Riyo felt when Padmé first swept into her office. "Wh-what do I say?"

"Say 'yes.'"

"Yes!" Titon gives Riyo and Ahsoka a short wave goodbye as he puts on his shoes. Riyo waves back and Ahsoka gives him an encouraging smile. The door shuts behind them and Ahsoka helps Riyo clean up the used mugs.

The doorbell rings again.

"Someone's popular," Ahsoka says. Riyo sighs.

"Can you get that? I'll finish up here."

Ahsoka opens the door, revealing an impeccably-dressed Pantoran man in his late twenties. His light purple hair is shorn in an undercut, and his facial tattoos look mighty familiar. The man pulls down his sunglasses so that he can look Ahsoka up and down.

"Hm," he tuts, unimpressed. "Who are you?"

"Who are you?" Ahsoka asks instead.

"I believe I asked first." The man shifts his weight to his back foot and waits expectantly, examining his manicured nails.

"Cousin Kaito," Riyo whispers, appearing at Ahsoka's shoulder. She's wiping her hands on a kitchen towel.

"Cousin Riyo," the man says. They lock eyes and the temperature seems to drop a couple degrees.

"You're letting the warm out." Riyo turns and walks back into the apartment, but gestures that he come in. "What do you want?"

"Family can't check in on each other nowadays?" Kaito walks into the living room and settles himself imperiously in the armchair as if it were a throne.

"Shoes," Riyo whispers as she sits on the couch across from him. Kaito waves it away.

"We both know I won't be here nearly long enough to justify taking them off. You have a paramour."

Riyo glares. "How did you know that?"

Kaito shrugs and oozes smugness. "Doesn't matter. Is it the Togruta girl? Oh it is!" He gasps with delight at their reactions. Ahsoka, too late, turns around and ducks into the kitchen to keep him from watching her for clues. The stripes on her lekku burn dark.

"Are you done?" Riyo hisses.

"Not quite," Kaito says, a shit-eating grin gracing his lips. "She's cute, I'll give you that, but the family will still ask you why you can't meet a nice Pantoran."

"That's none of their business."

"You know that won't stop them from meddling."

"They wouldn't…you are probably right. What do you want?"

"I want to be shot of this business. This bad blood between us, I hate it. Yes, I published the confidential letters you sent to me."

"And made money off of them," Riyo whispers.

"And made money off of them," Kaito echoes, then glares at her for the interruption. "But there's a reason why you sent those letters to me in the first place, and to no one else. And I have been trying to get back in your good graces ever since."

The two of them stare at each other.

"You hurt me," Riyo finally whispers. For the first time, a trace of shame flickers over Kaito's face.

"I am sorry about that, but it was the only way I knew how to help you. The Chuchi family may claim you now, while you are the darling of Pantora, but they did not when you were orphaned. Those letters granted you entrance to one of the best law schools in Pantora. They paid for your education. They gave you a future. Forgiveness is all I ask."

"I'll think about it," Riyo whispers. Kaito's eyes widen in surprise.

"Well then. I better tell you what all the Aunties and Uncles are planning: they're trying to use you as a pawn to establish an alliance with another family."

"I…really?" Riyo asks, thrown for a loop.

"Did you think they wouldn't go that far? It's a fate they don't wish on their own children, but it seems to be good enough for you. It's easily remedied, however."

"I'd need to appear in public with Ahsoka."

Kaito freezes. "Ahsoka as in Ahsoka Tano? As in bombed-the-Jedi-Temple Ahsoka Tano? The girl you did that ridiculous filibuster for?"

"She was acquitted," Riyo whispers. At the mention of her name, Ahsoka peeks out from the kitchen.

"Hi."

Kaito pales under his facial tattoos.

"But yes, that Ahsoka Tano." Riyo gestures to Ahsoka to sit next to her. "Ahsoka, this is my cousin, Kaito Chuchi."

Kaito looks back and forth between them. "This…is better than I expected. If I tell them you're dating Ahsoka Tano, they might give up on you."

"Which would be an improvement."

"Or they might try harder."

"Once this becomes public, what can they do, really?"

"You'd be surprised. Not to worry, I came here to warn you, and I'll intervene on their plans on your behalf." Kaito pushes himself out of the chair and gives Riyo the first genuine smile Ahsoka's seen from him. "I'll see myself out. Good day, Cousin."

* * *

Ahsoka thought she would be one of few people bundled up, but she's pleasantly surprised to be proven wrong. About a third of the people milling about in the streets are diaspora and tourists from other systems, and they're just as layered up as Ahsoka is.

She asked Riyo if she wanted to come parts shopping with her, but she begged off, saying that Kaito's visit was emotionally exhausting and she needed a nap. After reassuring Ahsoka that she'd be fine, Riyo pressed a keycard into her hands and shooed her and R7 out of the apartment so that she could sleep.

Now, armed with the meager amount of credits she has left, Ahsoka and R7 take to the market, buying parts for her lightsabers. A lot goes into a tool like that, all of them tiny and fiddly, and Ahsoka must wrack her brain to remember all of them, including their measurements, and the materials they're made of, so the amount of knowledge escalates quickly. And this time, there won't be a lightsaber architect around to catch any mistakes.

In order to compensate, Ahsoka draws knowledge from the Force through the crystals she's tucked into the breast pocket of her parka. While it's normal for Jedi to be attached to their crystals after they harvest them, Ahsoka's developed this inexplicable urge to keep the crystals as close to her skin as possible at all times. She finds herself slipping into trances not unlike how a person tries, but fails, not to fall asleep during a lecture or a boring show. It happens while she walks, or while she waits in line for the cashier. It's strange, but the crystals are warm and comforting, and she doesn't see any need for concern.

Ahsoka slides all the parts she's bought so far—all carefully packaged to keep them from jostling—into one cloth bag, which she ties off and gives to R7 to hold. He puts it into one of his compartments.

BEEP. Ahsoka's comlink lights up, and she answers it. Padmé's bust appears in the hologram.

"Hello Ahsoka."

"Hi Padmé. What's up?"

"Have you been keeping in touch with Anakin? He's been a little moody lately and I was wondering if maybe you knew what's been going on with him."

"He's worried about you. He's been having visions about you…in danger."

"Really? He hasn't mentioned anything."

"Ugh," Ahsoka groans. "I told him to talk to you. Have you at least been going to the doctor? That might help him not be so…him."

"I have another appointment tomorrow. Is this about my health?"

"It might be."

"Very well, I'll talk to him. Thank you, Ahsoka."

"No problem. Bye Padmé!"

"Bye!"

The call ends, and R7 chatters.

"Ugh, I know," Ahsoka says. The semi-trance feeling washes over her again and the next thing she knows, she's in front of a machine shop.

R7 beeps, asking her if she's okay. Apparently, she's been walking in a daze for the past couple minutes.

"What time is it?"

R7 beeps.

"I got time." Ahsoka walks into the shop. It's a lot like the one in her mind, only the layout is different and the make and model of some machines are off, but Ahsoka can still recognize most of them.

The owner, a big burly Pantoran man with a full beard, spots her and waves her over.

"Got a license?" he asks, and Ahsoka mentally curses. She's used machines in the Jedi Temple before to fabricate replacement parts for ships and starfighters, but she didn't need a license for that. She waves her hand.

"You don't need to see my license."

"I don't need to see your license," the man repeats a little flatly.

"I can use the machines."

"You can use the machines."

"You'll get me started."

"I'll get you started." The man points to the wall near the door. "Lockers over there. Boots are mandatory. So are aprons and goggles. Please tuck in your lekku; I've seen too many accidents in here to not remind anyone who has 'em."

"Thank you."

"I'll leave you to it." The man walks back to his project, scratching his head. Ahsoka shuts her parka in one of the lockers, and pulls on a pair of goggles. She ties on a dusty apron and tucks her lekku into the front so they don't dangle, then goes over to the raw stock rack to choose materials.

She goes in and out of consciousness after that. The materials float to her from the rack and the scrap bin, and they follow her to the horizontal mill, where they take turns getting ground into shape. Ahsoka uses the Force to turn the wheels that direct the bit. She does not worry about tolerances, or about following a plan. She just feels and goes.

While she does this, she turns the heads of a few other machine shop workers and while they don't abandon their projects to watch, they still follow her progress out of the corners of their eyes.

When she's done with the mill, Ahsoka goes to the boring machine to make the holes for the buttons and knobs, then she goes to the belt sander to blunt all the edges. Wherever she goes, the floating parts follow her.

She spot welds two halves of one lightsaber handle together first, to keep the halves from moving around, then does the finishing weld. She polishes the seam at the belt sander, then moves on to another handle.

Ahsoka ends up using several more machines and welds a lot of the pieces together by the time she's done. When she comes to, she's at the cleaning station, spraying all of her parts with degreaser. She squeezes the trigger of the bottle one last time, then turns to R7, who waits patiently at her side.

"What time is it?"

R7 tells her. She's been in a trance for a couple hours.

"Oh Force." Ahsoka puts the bottle back, then picks up a water hose. "Really?"

Yes, R7 beeps. Really, you weirdo.

"We're cutting it kinda close."

R7 beeps something about it being her fault. Ahsoka rolls her eyes and sprays her parts down with water, cleaning them of oil and grit. When she's done, she packs up her things and pays the machine shop owner for the materials she's used.

* * *

The apartment is dark and quiet when Ahsoka and R7 return. R7 swipes a comlink and rolls back out the door, beeping something about exploring the neighborhood and that he'll call if he's been impounded. Ahsoka pulls off her parka and toes off her boots, then makes her way to the master bedroom, where she finds Riyo sleeping.

Riyo's breathing is even and deep, and her lips are slightly parted. Ahsoka sets the cloth sack of lightsaber parts just inside the door and approaches the bed. She sits close enough that their hips brush through the comforter, but Riyo doesn't stir. Ahsoka reaches out and brushes a lock of hair out of her face. Her hair is silky smooth, and Ahsoka lets it slide through her fingers, amazed that she can do this whenever she wants.

But right now, they have places to be. Ahsoka sets a hand over one of Riyo's and squeezes.

"Wake up, Riyo."

Riyo blinks. Her eyes are clouded with sleep. "H-hello."

"Hi," Ahsoka says. Riyo stretches luxuriously and Ahsoka's eyes sweep the arc that her body makes. She forgets what she was going to say.

"Hmm." Riyo settles back onto the bed. "What time is it?"

Ahsoka checks the chrono on her gauntlet and tells her. Riyo gapes.

"Already? No, it cant be that late already." Riyo plants a quick kiss on Ahsoka's cheek before she rolls out of bed. She makes her way to the kitchen, flipping on lights as she goes.

"It is." Ahsoka follows her out and watches Riyo pop open the package. Riyo flips open the lid and picks out a couple sheets of tissue paper before she reaches in and pulls out an intricate silver mask. There's an attached semi-sheer veil that courses over her hands like liquid metal.

"It's a masquerade?" Ahsoka asks. "I don't have a mask."

"Apparently, you do." Riyo reaches in again and pulls out a fox hood. The two young women stare at it until Riyo mutters, "I wonder," and lifts the hood over Ahsoka's head. Ahsoka's world turns dark until Riyo pulls the muzzle down over her face so she can see out the eyeholes.

"How is it?" Riyo asks. Her hands smooth down the wide, attached fox arms and paws that dangle over Ahsoka's chest. Even though Ahsoka's montrals are covered, she can still hear clearly.

"It smells fake," Ahsoka says, strangely disappointed, but she supposes that not all cultures would be used to putting parts of dead animals on their heads.

"The fox's ears are right where your montrals are," Riyo says. "This mask was made for a Togruta."

"How did they know I'd be coming with you?" Ahsoka pushes the muzzle up to her forehead. "I mean, I'm not complaining; this mask is super comfortable. But still."

"The Chairman's on the organizational committee for the ball, because he's a major sponsor. Someone in the Chairman's Cabinet must be very informed." Riyo slips into a thoughtful silence as she adjusts the Fox's paws. There are pockets stitched in the underside of the arms. Riyo reaches up, but hesitates.

"May I?"

"Yeah."

Riyo's hand descends gently onto Ahsoka's lek to pick it up so that she can carefully tuck it into the hidden pocket. She does the same with the next one, and when she's done, she drops her hands and releases a long breath that she's been holding.

Ahsoka smiles. "Nervous?"

"Well, yes. I don't want to break the Taboo."

"No, you're fine. Immediate family can touch a Togruta's lekku. So can significant others."

"I didn't know that."

"I never told you. The last time we talked about the Taboo, I was a Jedi and I assumed that I'd never have a family or a significant other, so I didn't think it was important to explain."

Pity flickers in Riyo's eyes for a split second, but it soon gives way to something else. She raises her hands once more, and places them over Ahsoka's lekku, feeling them through the fake fur of the hood.

"So I can do this without asking."

Ahsoka's breath stutters, but not because of the sensation. Despite the outrageous claims of many skin holos, lekku aren't hypersensitive at all.

"Yes, you can," Ahsoka finally says. Riyo nods, then smooths the fox arms down.

"Thank you," she says, and falls into a thoughtful silence.

"What are you thinking?" Ahsoka asks.

"The people in charge of the Trickster's Ball are always thorough. They assign all the guests' masks and there are never any duplicates. But even with the Chairman's resources, it doesn't explain how they can know about us so quickly. There must be a leak in the Galactic Senate."

"That's a heavy assumption to make. And it's kind of paranoid."

"Government offices, every single one of them, leak like sieves. Our friendship was not a secret in the Galactic Senate, and it seems it's not a secret here either. And a government leak would explain where Kaito got his information."

"He works with the government too?" Ahsoka asks.

"He can't tell himself what he does, lest he arrest himself. I can't tell you're Togruta under there."

Ahsoka pulls the muzzle down over her face. "Grr. A fox huh? That's what they think of me?"

"Be glad you're not the eopie."

"Wow, they'd actually make someone be an eopie?" Ahsoka bites back a laugh. "What are you?"

"A silver-tongue." Riyo picks up the ethereal mask and holds it over her face. "One of the Moon Goddess's envoys to the rest of the Gods to keep Them from slaughtering all of Creation."

"Fitting."

"I did say they were thorough, didn't I?" Riyo takes a few more things out of the package before gesturing to Ahsoka. "Come on, you're going to have to help me change."

"W-what?"

Riyo explains as they get ready. Because sleeve tattoos are so widespread in Pantora, simply hiding their faces won't work. Anyone familiar with another's tattoos could recognize them through their ink. While people who wear menswear are safe with their gloves and formal jackets, everyone else is provided with special blue sleeves that cover their hands, arms and shoulders. The two sleeves tie together over the back and over the chest, and when they're in place, (Ahsoka fumbles the knot twice due to shaky fingers before she's able to secure it correctly) it looks like Riyo's never had tattoos in the first place.

* * *

The Trickster's Ball is already in full swing when they arrive. Ahsoka, anticipating how cold it is inside, simply shrugged on a long, burnt orange peacoat over her usual dress and pulled her fox hood back on. Riyo, on the other hand, wears a flowing white and silver dress and has pulled her hair back in a half ponytail. Her mask covers her facial tattoos and the veil drapes over her head and down to the middle of her back.

They're not the only ones to arrive late. A tauntaun and loth-cat couple enter after them and they all must duck under the arm of an enormous, jakobeast-hooded man in order to get into the ballroom.

The focus of the room is the wide dance floor, which is filled with people. Others watch from the sides, their hands holding champagne flutes and small plates of appetizers from the food tables that line one side of the magnificent hall.

"Ooh," Ahsoka says. "Do you think they'll have that reindeer soup?"

She says this just as a woman wearing a reindeer hood walks past her. The woman turns and peers closely at Ahsoka.

"Do you know me, Fox?" she asks.

"Oh Force, I'm sorry. I didn't mean you."

"You're not going to eat me?" Miss Reindeer smirks as she looks Ahsoka up and down. "That's a shame."

"What?" The hood must be doing something to Ahsoka's montrals because she swears she just heard….

"Thank you, goodbye!" Riyo takes Ahsoka's hand and pulls her away. Ahsoka, still reeling from…whatever that was, doesn't regain her focus until Riyo pushes a small bowl of steaming hot soup into her hands.

"Eat," she says. Ahsoka takes a sip. The pieces of meat are small enough so that she doesn't need a fork or a spoon. When she's done with that, Riyo gives her a full shot glass.

Ahsoka stares.

"You look like you need that," Riyo says, her own shot glass in hand. "And if we're going to do this, I'm going to need one too."

They down the shots and set the glasses on the table. The band strikes up a somewhat melancholy waltz and a few couples take to the floor to dance. It's what Ahsoka imagines when she hears the word 'ball,' but if Miss Reindeer was out of line, Riyo would have told her off, not excuse them both.

"What is this?" Ahsoka asks. "The Trickster's Ball? What's it for?"

Riyo turns to Ahsoka, sheepish. "It's a two-week festival of hedonism and debauchery."

"Holy kriff!" No wonder Magnus was so worried.

"We don't have to stay the entire time," Riyo says. "We just have to find the Chairman, say hello, and then leave."

Ahsoka looks around at all the masked faces. Two people, masked as a brine-eel and a hawk, support their friend, an Akk dog, between them. A Pantoran snow hare darts up to them and wafts a drink under the Akk dog's nose and they perk up. Together, the friends bring the dog into another wing of the building off of the ballroom. The closer she looks, the more she notices that a lot of people need to be supported by their friends and significant others.

"How are we gonna find him in this?" Ahsoka asks.

"You're a fox, you'll think of something." Riyo steps in closer and drops her voice. "But in the meantime, we can still have fun, right?"

Ahsoka doesn't know if it's the mask, or if Riyo's always been that smooth, but she offers her arm all the same. "Miss Silver-Tongue."

"Miss Fox." Riyo takes her arm and they make their way to the dance floor. The other couples are doing a waltz, and while Ahsoka knows the basic steps, she takes Riyo's hand in hers and she settles into a shuffle instead. Riyo, however, knows the dance too, and Ahsoka's able to lead her around the dance floor without any trouble.

"Where'd you learn to dance?" Ahsoka asks as she makes Riyo do a twirl.

"With the Twi'lek Ambassador's daughter in her dorm room at the Academy."

"The same one who taught you Twi'leki?"

"Yes, she said my accent was terrible because I have no lekku. And you?"

"With Padmé on her ship when we went to visit the Separatists," Ahsoka says. She switches their hands up and grins when Riyo catches on without a hitch and switches their roles. When it's Ahsoka's turn to twirl, Riyo must reach up high to keep their hands from being separated.

"Padmé taught you to dance?"

"Jealous?"

"Perhaps. Jealous of Padmé."

Ahsoka opens her mouth to say something, but she's cut off when someone bumps into her.

"Hey!" Ahsoka lifts her foot just in time to avoid it being stepped on. "Excuse you!"

The clumsy dancer reeks of alcohol and wears an eopie mask. "I'm terribly sorry," he says, and does a double-take at them. Ahsoka too, stares and cannot help the dread welling up in her gut.

"Do you know me, Fox?" the Eopie asks.

Ahsoka does, but maybe she's wrong. Maybe the Eopie will shake his head and say that she's mistaken and then they'll both move on and forget about ever meeting the other. But both the Eopie and Riyo watch her expectantly.

"Lux?" Ahsoka asks.

"Ahsoka!" the Eopie says. Ahsoka kind of wants to die.

"You're a fox?" Lux asks. "I mean, of course you're a fox. You were always the crafty one."

"Aw thanks…buddy."

"Who is your date?" Lux asks.

"Ah, Riyo, this is Lux Bonteri. Lux, this is my girlfriend, Riyo Chuchi."

"A fellow Senator! I've heard of you," Lux says as they shake hands. "I've read your essays. Phenomenal work."

"Thank you," Riyo says.

"Hey, it was nice seeing you again," Ahsoka lies through her teeth, "but we don't wanna be rude and keep you from your date." Ahsoka gestures to the young lady standing a little ways away from them. "We should really be going."

"Of course! That's very kind of you."

"Before we go, have you seen Chairman Papanoida?" Ahsoka says.

"Last I saw he was in the gambling den. Good luck!" and with that Lux waves goodbye and returns to his date.

Ahsoka takes Riyo's hand and leads the way off the dance floor, swiping two more shots off of a tray as she goes. She might have used the Force to get them. If asked, she'd say it was instinctual.

"So, he was the one, huh?" Riyo asks, and Ahsoka's lekku burn in humiliation.

"Please don't." Ahsoka gives Riyo a glass and downs her own shot.

Riyo drinks too, then gives Ahsoka a little half-hug. "I'm only teasing! Your taste has vastly improved."

"Has it though?" Ahsoka asks with a lopsided grin. Riyo gasps in mock indignation.

"Touché!"

"Someone's gotta keep you humble," Ahsoka says, but when she takes Riyo's hand again, their fingers intertwine.

She and Riyo emerge from the ballroom into a wide hallway draped with curtains. Some of them have been moved around, making private spaces. The Hawk from earlier searches through this hallway, stumbling slightly from inebriation.

"Miss Snow Hare?" he calls. "Where are you?"

He's answered by a giggle that comes from behind a pillar.

"Is that?" Ahsoka asks, but Riyo shushes her.

"Yes it is, but I don't want to interrupt him while he's hunting."

A second later, the Snow Hare from earlier comes out from behind the pillar. She catches the Hawk around the back of the neck with a scarf and pulls him in for a full-on pornographic kiss.

"Whoa," Ahsoka says. She uses the Force to close the curtains around them.

"Thank you," Riyo says. They get through to the other side of the hallway and into the gambling den without any further incident.

Cigarette smoke wafts into the air over the few dozen or so tables, where people are playing card and dice games. The clink of credits can be heard over the low music. Attendants, wearing black domino masks, flit back and forth between tables, serving drinks and snacks.

"Miss Silver-Tongue!" a Hoth snow bear thunders at them from one of the nearby tables and Ahsoka's grip tightens around Riyo's hand. "I know you!"

Ahsoka and Riyo share a look, then pick their way across the room to him. The Snow Bear sits at a table with a group masked as a Krayt Dragon, a Jagalor, and a Shaclaw. A cigar pokes out from between the Krayt Dragon's open jaws, giving off the impression of breathing fire.

"Magnus?" Riyo asks.

"Yes!" the Snow Bear says. He nods at Ahsoka. "Hello, Miss Fox."

"Hi, Magnus."

"Mm!" Magnus finishes a shot and stamps the glass back down on the table. "Tell these morons about the initiation Snow Walk."

"You mean the one you're taking me on later this week?" Riyo asks. At that, Magnus regards the rest of the table with severe vindication.

"Miss Silver-Tongue, meet my old squad mates," Magnus says. "Lads, meet my daughter."

Riyo waves. "Hello, Uncles."

At this, the rest of the table erupts.

"Gods Almighty, man, are you trying to make us feel old?"

"We are old, you idiot."

"Is he paying you to say that? How much is he paying you?"

Magnus ignores them in favor of talking to Riyo.

"We've never had drinks together, have we?"

"No." Riyo smiles and shakes her head. Magnus hails a passing attendant and orders a round of drinks for everyone.

"Cheers!" the Jagalor shouts. Everyone raises their glasses. "To Mr. Snow Bear and his daughter!"

"And how lucky she is that she don't have his ugly mug!" the Krayt roars. Everyone else laughs and Magnus tosses a handful of chips at him. They toast and finish their drinks, which somehow tastes like smoke, charcoal, and wood fire all mixed together. Ahsoka grimaces and swipes a cup of juice off a passing tray to wash it out, but Riyo just exhales and sets her glass down on the table.

"Have you seen the Chairman?" Riyo asks.

"I have. He left a little while ago. Went that way." Magnus points to the other end of the gambling den. "Do you know where Titon went? I've been meaning to introduce him to these eopies. Finally get him into officer's school."

"He's the hawk, right?" Ahsoka asks. She places her empty cup on another tray.

"He is."

"Yeah, he's…busy," Ahsoka says. Riyo giggles. The alcohol they drank earlier must be catching up with her because she snakes an arm around Ahsoka's waist to steady herself. Ahsoka catches Riyo and pulls her into her side.

"Damn," Magnus says. "Well if you see him, tell him I asked for him."

"Will do!"

They say their goodbyes and Ahsoka puts gentle pressure on the small of Riyo's back to steer her through the gambling den.

"Are you okay?" Ahsoka asks over the din of sound.

"Yes," Riyo says. Her face is tinged indigo under her mask.

The two of them make their way up a flight of wide stairs into a dance club, and they quickly leave to spare Ahsoka's montrals of the piercing bass.

Riyo stops an attendant and asks them where the Chairman is. They tell her that he's one of the judges at a poetry competition that's being held in the attached alehouse in the back.

The alehouse is packed. People sit in rows of chairs set up before a small stage, but more people crowd into the standing space behind them and at the bar. The judges sit in a long box opposite of the stage above the audience. Papanoida, his mask brilliant with gold, sits in the box with a hellhound, a vro-cat, and two others. All of them have data pads to score performers. Riyo and Ahsoka make their way through the crowd and up the stairs to the Judge's Box.

"Sir Sun," Riyo says. "I know you."

"Why, Miss Silver-Tongue, Miss Fox. Come in, ladies." Papanoida keeps his voice low out of respect for the current performer. They catch a flash of Papanoida's data pad before he flips it over. He gave them a score of 7. Ouch.

"I was afraid I wouldn't see you two. Enjoying yourselves so far?"

"Very much. Thank you for inviting us."

"I've never been to anything like this before," Ahsoka says. "It's a lot to take in."

"It can be overwhelming, yes," Papanoida says. "Will you be staying long?"

"Unfortunately, we must leave soon," Riyo says, "we've overstayed already."

"But the night is still young!" Papanoida claps as the performer finishes their piece and taps on his data pad to send his score to the host. "Gambling and sex may not be everyone's vice, but surely poetry has a place in everyone's soul."

"I don't do poetry."

"Everyone knows you do poetry, my dear." Papanoida stands up and catches the host's eye before they can announce the next performer.

"Mx. Tree Spirit!" Papanoida voice carries throughout the house. "I have a sacrificial poet for you!"

The host whoops. "What do you say, everyone? Shall we accept this poet?"

"Yes!" the crowd roars. Riyo turns to Papanoida, her gold eyes blazing through her mask. Papanoida's beard twitches as he smiles down at her.

"One poem, Miss Silver-Tongue, and you'll earn your exit for both you and your companion."

"One poem?"

"That's all I ask."

"Very well." Riyo snatches Papanoida's glass and downs the drink, then makes her way down the narrow stairs from the box. Papanoida laughs, full and deep, and he sits back down in his seat. Ahsoka remains in the box.

"I didn't know Riyo wrote poetry."

"A writer of her caliber dabbles in all kinds of writing, Miss Fox." Papanoida offers her a drink, but she gently turns him down. Riyo steps onto the stage amidst cheers and Ahsoka pushes the muzzle of her mask up to her forehead to better see. Riyo adjusts the height of the microphone (the Tree Spirit is tall) and when she's ready, her eyes lock onto Ahsoka's.

"Who wants to hear a love poem?" she asks. Ahsoka's breath catches in her throat.

* * *

This heart is yours, has been yours, and will always be yours. This heart is a spring for you. This heart runneth over. It creates oceans for you, and it will grow whole oases. I'll be a small, hidden wonder of the galaxy.

You are a wanderer in Tatooine with chapped lips and split skin. You have a dryness in your veins and grit between your teeth. You were stranded there, and you chose it. The only water you see is a trick of the light, so you ask if the water in the past was a sleight of hand. Watch everything you thought you knew get buried in the sand.

Let me take care of you.

You. As subtle as a blaster bolt, faster than a racing volt of electricity, you mesmerize me. Nobody has ever ensnared me so thoroughly, so let me bend a knee; I'll worship you wholeheartedly. Take all of me.

I'll canteen your thirst.

Fingertips, stomach and thighs, my skin matches the color of your eyes. The color of the sea. Unwrap me carefully.

You worry about your hands in mine; yours are roughened over time. You don't yet know that they can be kind. That they can offer peace of mind. So be deliberate with me. When I say that this heart is yours, I mean that it is for all of you. Not just for the soft. Not just for the tender. But also for the parts rendered too injured for daylight.

It's also for the parts of you that go bump in the night.

So don't worry about the scars on your skin, they map the trouble you've been in. I have baggage of a different weight. Our freight could fill a cargo hold, but this ship is also full of cold water.

So stop questioning the purity of the well and come drink this water.

* * *

"Thank you!" Riyo waves to the cheering crowd before she steps off the stage. "You're all very kind."

The host offers her a hand to help her off the stage before going up themselves to announce the next poet. Riyo, short as she is, finds herself lost in a sea of people, and can't find her way back to the Judge's Box. She picks her way through the crowd, inebriated enough to not be all that concerned about her situation.

"Can we get some scores for our sacrificial poet? Okay, we have a low of an eight point five…."

"Boo!" Half the crowd shouts, rowdy with alcohol. The noise hides Riyo's yelp as someone grabs her wrist. She turns and sees a dark Stratt. Wild Stratts are odd canine-like creatures, bipedal, with jet-black fur. His gold eyes flash from within the hood.

"Mr. Stratt, do you know me?"

"You're trying to get back to your friend, right?" he asks instead. His voice is as deep as a grave. "This way."

He parts the crowd easily with his height, and pulls Riyo along, but instead of going up the stairs to the Judge's Box, she finds herself in a deserted service corridor.

"Stop!" Riyo turns her wrist and yanks her hand through his thumb, breaking his hold on her. She takes a couple steps back. "Where are you taking me?"

The Stratt tenses and Riyo turns to run, but he grabs her around the waist and lifts her up. She brings a foot out in front of her and then kicks it back, hitting him square in the groin with her heel.

"Ah!" the Stratt loosens his hold and doubles over, letting Riyo back onto the floor. She twists and sends one of her elbows cracking across his temple, whipping his head to the side. She pushes him away, and tries to run again, only he grabs her and pushes her to the floor.

"Oof!" Riyo lands hard on the floor, winded. The Stratt looms over her.

"Get off of me!" She rolls over and lashes out, slapping his muzzle aside and twisting his hood around. The Stratt pulls his hood aright and raises his fist high, but Riyo jabs two of her fingers into the hollow of his throat and hooks them down under his collarbone. He shouts and jerks away as if burned.

"Rragh!"

The Stratt is picked up and tossed down the corridor as if no bigger than a puppy. He skids a little ways more after he lands and when he comes to a stop, he groans and rolls over to get back onto his feet.

Riyo looks up and sees Ahsoka standing just inside the corridor, her hands held up and her teeth bared. Her eyes are a dangerous shade of dark blue in her mask.

"Ahso-Miss Fox," Riyo says, her body flooding with relief. Ahsoka rushes to her and helps her up.

"Did he hurt you?"

"No. I'm…I'm fine." But Riyo still clutches at the epaulettes of Ahsoka's coat. Ahsoka hugs her close and watches the Stratt carefully over her shoulder.

"I don't know how you did that, but you'll regret it," the Stratt says. He towers over even Ahsoka, and is probably thrice her weight. Ahsoka lifts two fingers from the small of Riyo's back and Force pushes him down the hallway, slamming him against the door at the other end.

BOOM.

The Stratt bounces off the door and hits the floor, groaning. When he finally picks himself up, he leaves without another word, slamming the door shut behind him.

"Take me home," Riyo says, her voice shaking.

"We need to report this."

"Not now. Take me home."

"Okay. Come on." Ahsoka takes Riyo's hand and together, they make their way out.

* * *

Note Bene: Four fucking shots within an hour tops. Are you serious, Riyo? You only weigh a hundred pounds.

Riyo uses very basic Krav Maga techniques in this chapter (sloppy and incomplete tho, because she's super drunk). I highly recommend it as a self-defense system, because it's vicious and mean and works for people no matter what their size.

There's one concept of Togruta lekku culture that I thought of that I'm not going to be able to use in this story, so I'm gonna describe it here: ritual bloodletting from lekku. It would be done using Akul-tooth knives, and would be done to appease their dead ancestors, which they would deify. The only Togruta who would regularly do this ritual (and by regularly, I mean once a month) would be tribal chiefs and community leaders.

Please leave feedback! I appreciate hearing from all of you. You're all cool people and I wish you a good rest of the week.


	9. Gently

Ahsoka is a comforting weight at Riyo's back, with her arm draped over her waist. She seems to have been awake for a while, and instead of getting out of bed, is content to play big spoon and to read something off of Riyo's white data pad, which hovers at eye level thanks to the Force. Riyo lies still for a moment, as if she's still sleeping, and tries to peek at the data pad without moving her head.

"I can sense you thinking," Ahsoka says, her voice soft. She kisses the back of Riyo's shoulder and lets the data pad fall onto the bed. "Good morning."

"Is it good though?" Riyo asks. She has questions, an incredible headache, and a queasy stomach. She feels Ahsoka smirk against her hair.

"Feeling sick?"

"How do—Yes."

Ahsoka gives her one last kiss to the temple before she gets up and pads over to the kitchen, leaving her to take stock of her room.

She's wearing a t-shirt she doesn't remember putting on and has a couple bruises she doesn't remember getting. The dress she wore yesterday is a white and silver pool of cloth on the floor just inside her closet. Ahsoka's dress and coat are piled on the seat of the vanity chair and the fox hood leers from its place draped over the back of the chair.

Riyo tries to get up, but a sudden wave of nausea makes her groan and lie down again. Eventually, she shifts into a sitting up position against the headboard.

Ahsoka appears in the doorway, holding a glass of water and a packet of effervescent tablets, which she gives to Riyo. She sits down on the bed, making it shift under her weight.

"How are you?"

"I feel like a million credits." Riyo rips open the packet with her teeth and drops the tablets in the water. They fizzle and she helps them along by swirling the glass a little bit.

"You look like a million credits."

"Hah!" Riyo laughs, then winces and holds her stomach. "Look at you, all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. How are you doing that?"

Ahsoka gives her an apologetic smile. "Force-sensitives have pretty good constitutions."

"That's not fair." Riyo sips at the water at first, careful not to take too much at once and make her stomach worse, but then decides to drink half the glass anyway. She sets the glass on the nightstand and steels herself.

"Ahsoka."

"Yeah?"

"I-I don't really remember much after we left the ball and I…" Riyo stops, unsure of how to proceed. Ahsoka's blue eyes turn guarded, but she doesn't turn away, so Riyo continues.

"I have a bruise on my hip." It's a familiar bruise, and it's in a place where, if Riyo was grabbed in just the right way….

Ahsoka smiles in relief. "Oh, that. You bumped into the corner of the kitchen table. Does it hurt? I could get you an ice pack."

"Thank you, but I think I'll be alright. Did-did we…?" Riyo makes a gesture that makes Ahsoka's lekku stripes darken.

"No." Ahsoka answers quickly.

"Did I…?" Riyo points at the refresher.

"No," Ahsoka says again. "Wow, you really don't remember, huh?"

"Mm. No." Riyo closes her eyes tight and digs deep for what she does remember. "There was that man in the alehouse, and then I asked you to take me home."

She vaguely remembers Ahsoka holding her almost possessively close, and how she willingly folded herself into Ahsoka's arms, but everything after that is a muddled blur.

"Yeah. You fell asleep in the taxi, and then I woke you up when we got back and made you drink some water. And then you changed out of your dress and fell asleep. Riyo?"

"Yes?"

Ahsoka hesitates. "Are you okay? I mean, that guy was such a creep."

Riyo stares down at her hands. She doesn't know how much of what she's feeling can be attributed to the hangover, or to the Incident in the Alehouse. There's also this irrational thought that maybe it's all her fault. Maybe if she weren't so incredibly trusting, then she wouldn't have gone with the Stratt in the first place.

Wait, no. That's wrong. Good people just don't attack other people like that.

"I don't know," she finally says. "I think I'm more okay than not."

"You're handling this really well."

"It's not the worst that's happened to me, actually. Someone once came at me with a knife, and _that_ was much more frightening."

Ahsoka's jaw drops and Riyo shrugs.

"Terrible, I know. Magnus happened to be there, and he handled it. I hired him on the spot." Riyo falls into another thoughtful silence. "If you weren't there…."

"Don't do that. I _was_ there." Ahsoka holds out her hands. "May I?"

Riyo takes her hands and tugs her closer. The both of them end up lying in bed once more, cuddling, and Riyo brings the covers back up over them both. Ahsoka's cheek presses against Riyo's forehead and all the clenched muscles in Riyo's neck and back immediately relax. She might say that what happened wasn't a big deal, but just talking about it still made her tense up.

"I'm going to call the Ball organizers about it today."

"Do you want me there?" Ahsoka asks, her voice gentle. Due to their position, with Riyo's ear pressed to Ahsoka's chest, she feels Ahsoka's voice more than she hears it, and she finds herself lowering her own voice to match it.

"Yes, they'll need your statement."

"Okay. What else can I do? What do you need?"

"Just this." Riyo closes her eyes and listens to the steady thump of Ahsoka's heart.

R7 rolls into the open doorway, whistling. Ahsoka lifts her head a little to look at him.

"Yeah, she's hung over. Why?"

One of R7's manipulators pop out. He reaches into one of his compartments and pulls out an air horn. The two women gape at him.

"Don't," Ahsoka says, but R7 rocks back and forth as if to psych himself up. "I'm serious, you better not do it."

R7 presses the button on the valve.

B-B-B-BRRR!

Riyo recoils from the piercing sound and holds a pillow over her head to muffle it.

"Oh hell!" Ahsoka leaps up, her hands outstretched. She swipes at the airhorn, but R7 dodges. "Stop!"

 _For ten thousand credits, I will stop,_ R7 beeps.

After a couple failed attempts at taking the airhorn away, Ahsoka flicks her hand and takes the airhorn apart using the Force. The sounds tapers off as the canister twists and falls out of the valve onto the rug. R7 tries to grab it, but Ahsoka summons the canister into her palm.

"You are _grounded_ ," Ahsoka shouts. R7 drops the valve and zooms out of the bedroom, shrieking. Ahsoka runs out after him, ordering him to _hold still, dammit_.

The comlink on the nightstand beeps and Riyo gropes blindly until she finds it. She brings it under the pillow to her ear.

"Hello?"

 _"Good, you're alive,"_ Magnus says from the other end.

"Barely." Riyo emerges from under the pillow for air. "I've got a terrible hangover."

 _"But your voice has returned! Do you need anything? I could stop by with supplies."_

"Thanks, but that's alright. I don't think I'll be leaving the apartment today."

 _"That's probably for the best. Feel better, Riyo. Get plenty of water, rest, and carbs and you'll be back on your feet in no time."_

Riyo thinks about telling him about the Stratt. She decides not to.

"Thank you, Magnus. Enjoy your vacation." Riyo sets the comlink back on the nightstand and finishes the rest of her water. The tablets seem to be working and when she tries to get up this time, she's able to keep her balance and stagger to the refresher without incident. While she washes up, she hears the holoscreen turn on in the living room.

 _"Convicted of Sedition against the Republic, multiple first-degree murders, and conspiracy. Miss Offee has been sentenced to life without parole and is currently being temporarily held by the Jedi Order in a secure facility. Sources tell us that the transfer of custody into Republic hands is set to take place later today. Here with me now is Jedi spokesperson Tamlin Grogat. Master Grogat, can you please explain why Miss Offee's trial was conducted by the Jedi Order, while the previous one for Ahsoka Tano was conducted by a Republic Tribunal?"_

"Ugh." Ahsoka changes the channel. R7, who sits in the corner with his camera facing the wall like a punished youngling, cautiously turns to look. "Nope, one full hour."

R7 grumbles.

"Wanna make it two?"

R7 bleeps and his camera snaps back to the wall. Riyo walks into the room—her hair pulled back in a messy bun—and sits down next to Ahsoka.

"Are you alright?" Riyo asks.

"I'll be fine after some meditation. Are you hungry?"

"You know, I actually am? Did you cook?"

Ahsoka shrugs. "I made toast?"

Riyo chuckles, then leans over to kiss Ahsoka on the cheek. "Food is food. Thank you." She gets up and goes to the kitchen. "I'm going to make some pasta, do you want some?"

"Yeah." Ahsoka listens to the sounds of Riyo rifling through cabinets in the kitchen and feels the lingering tingle of the kiss on her cheek and finds that she can't summon the anger that would necessitate having to meditate right now. Instead, she pushes off the couch and joins Riyo in the kitchen.

"Need any help?"

* * *

Later that morning, Riyo receives a hologram comlink call from Padmé Amidala.

"Odd," Riyo says to herself. She's alone in her office, sorting out stacks of data cards. R7 has long since been released from his time-out and Ahsoka has taken over the living room to meditate with her kyber crystals. Riyo answers the call and sits back in her chair.

"Hello?"

 _"Hello, Riyo."_ The corners of Padmé's eyes crinkle as she smiles. _"Enjoying your vacation?"_

"Very much! I got my voice back."

 _"That's good. I must let you know that I might be taking a leave of absence from the Senate."_

"A leave of absence?"

 _"Yes. Starting later this week. There are some things that I must attend to."_

"This is a secret, isn't it? I only ask to make sure that I shouldn't tell anyone."

Padmé's eyes widen in surprise. _"It is. How do you know that?"_

"If it wasn't a secret, then you'd be sending a Senate-wide notification through the data pads, which you haven't."

 _"Clever girl,"_ Padmé says, impressed. _"Ahsoka tells me you've also figured out my great secret."_

"I…well…."

 _"Thank you for keeping it in confidence."_

"Of course! Padmé, I would never betray you like that. And it's really none of my business."

 _"I know, and I appreciate your discretion. Is Ahsoka there too? I need to talk to her."_

"Yes, although, she's meditating. Let me get her for you."

Riyo leaves for a moment, then returns with Ahsoka. Ahsoka's eyes light up when she sees Padmé.

"Hey, Padmé!"

 _"Hello, Ahsoka. How are you?_ _Is Riyo treating you well?"_

"She's a wonderful host," Ahsoka says.

 _"Splendid! I must congratulate you both on your new relationship."_

Ahsoka and Riyo share a stunned silence for a moment, and a sly smirk spreads over Padmé's face.

"H-how did you know?" Riyo asks, internally cursing her stutter.

 _"You're not the only observant person, Riyo,"_ Padmé says. _"And you're not the only crafty one, either; I didn't have any proof until just now. Oh I can't wait to tell Anakin, he'll owe me a candlelit dinner."_

"Force, they've been gossiping about us," Ahsoka says to Riyo. Riyo flushes indigo and Padmé laughs.

 _"If it helps, you two make a very cute couple, and I'm very happy for you. You'll be able to give your relationship the effort and attention it deserves if you aren't hiding it from the Jedi Council. Which reminds me; have you noticed worrying things about Ahsoka yet, Riyo?"_

Riyo gives Ahsoka an apologetic glance. "I have. Is it like that with you and Anakin?"

 _"Yes. It comes with the territory. My comlink is always open to you should you need it."_

"Thank you, Padmé."

"What things?" Ahsoka asks.

"You know how you'd come to me to vent?" Riyo asks. "The things you'd vent about…you've been through a lot. I worry."

"Oh." Ahsoka's eyes become unfocused as she thinks back. "Huh. And you said Anakin's like me?"

 _"He is. I called to talk about him, actually. He's still a little paranoid about me and my health. I've seen the doctor and everything's fine, so he's content for the moment, but I can tell that it's still eating away at him. Has he mentioned anything to you, Ahsoka?"_

"Not today. He doesn't talk to you?" Ahsoka asks.

 _"He's actually been quite open with me lately. It's very refreshing. But I must cover all the bases. You understand."_

"I do. I'll let you know if anything comes up."

 _"Thank you, Ahsoka."_

* * *

Ahsoka sits cross-legged on a bedsheet spread over the floor, then lines up all of the unpacked lightsaber parts in an arc before her. As far as she remembers, everything she needs to create both lightsabers is here, but she won't really know for sure until she's halfway through.

She hopes she doesn't blow herself up. Riyo is on the couch a few feet away, watching, and if Ahsoka blew herself up now, that'd be kind of embarrassing. Ahsoka reaches into her shirt and pulls out the leather pouch containing her kyber crystals. For the past couple days, she'd peeked at the Force through the crystals like a youngling with a magnifying lens and every time she's looked, she's found the Force as mesmerizing and kaleidoscopic as that first immersive time on Mortis.

She undoes the drawstring and shakes the crystals out onto her palm. When she first got them, they were tinged green. Now, however, they've been bleached into a frosted white.

"Huh," she whispers, but a crystal is a crystal. She takes one in each hand, straightens up and and slips into meditation. The colors of the room ease into bland monochrome and the sounds soften to mute as the crystals levitate from Ahsoka's palms and take to the air. They glint and shine against the gloom.

Ahsoka breathes in and out. She empties herself of thought and feeling not unlike how she did in the machine shop in the market. There is no time when she's in this state. No hunger. No thirst. The Force washes around her like music and she lets it flow through her. The lightsaber parts on the floor around her tremble, then lift off of the sheet and into the air around her in a swirl before splitting up into two groups around each crystal.

The Force seems to look at each part in turn, inspecting it thoroughly before moving on to the next one. To Ahsoka's relief, every part she needs is here. They hover into formation, ready, then they slowly come together and click into place. They do this even though Ahsoka created some of the parts from scratch, without any plans. The tolerances are still perfect. It would take the other machinists in that shop the better part of a week to design the necessary plans for the same set of parts, and it would take another week for them to manufacture them.

The cores of the lightsabers, now complete, slide into the handle casings and once they lock into place, the dials and switches sink into the casings with a series of snaps, completing them.

The lightsabers float down and rest in Ahsoka's palms.

Ahsoka breathes in. Out. The light of the Force fades from around her. Colors come back. So do sounds. Ahsoka eases back into the world and opens her eyes to look at her lightsabers for the first time.

They're slightly curved, much longer than her previous lightsabers, but thinner, with flat sides. One of them is much shorter than the other. Ahsoka's fingers curl around them and finds that they're the perfect shape to fit into her hands. Because of the welding and the sanding, both look as if fashioned from one piece of metal; elegant and sleek.

Ahsoka points the longer lightsaber away from her face and activates it.

KYSHHOO.

The blade, like her crystals, is silver white. Ahsoka adjusts the length of the blade, then deactivates it. She does the same with her shoto lightsaber, then stands up. When she activates them at the same time, she basks in the familiarity of it all. It's as if she's been missing a limb and only now has regained it. Ahsoka flips the lightsabers into her usual grip, then does a few basic katas to acquaint herself with the balance and weight of the lightsabers. As she does this the Force sings through her.

When Ahsoka deactivates the lightsabers, she's smiling hard enough to hurt her face.

* * *

That afternoon, Ahsoka is pulled out of lightsaber practice by a hologram comlink call from Anakin. She sets her lightsabers aside and answers it.

"Hello?"

 _"Hey, Snips."_ Anakin looks as if he hasn't been getting any sleep lately. _"You lost me a bet."_

"Jedi shouldn't gamble," Ahsoka says with a grin. "It can lead to anger."

 _"Ha ha. At least you figured yourself out."_

"Yeah, that was a trip. Any other outstanding bets I need to know about?"

 _"No, that's it. But there's something else I need to tell you."_ Anakin hesitates, and Ahsoka senses some trepidation on his part through the Force bond they share.

"What's wrong?"

 _"I need you to go to Malachor."_

Ahsoka opens her mouth, closes it, and frowns. "Malachor, considered by everyone in the Galaxy to be the literal manifestation of _Hell,_ that Malachor?"

 _"Snips, please. It's for research. There's a Sith holocron on that planet…."_

"Did I do something wrong?"

 _"No!"_

"Am I being punished for something?"

 _"Will you let me explain? I've heard of a Sith parable that I need you to verify for me."_ Anakin tells her of Darth Plagueis and how he was a Force-wielder who was powerful enough to reverse death. The more he talks, the more pronounced the crazed glint in his eye gets and the more concerned Ahsoka feels.

 _"…And if it saves Padmé, can it really be that bad?"_

"Who told you this story?" Ahsoka asks.

 _"The Chancellor."_

"Why would the Chancellor know Sith lore?"

 _"He's a widely-read man, Ahsoka. He craves knowledge for knowledge sake."_

"Okay, but Sith lore? I mean…please think about it, Master. I know he's a good friend of yours, but what if he's selling you something that's not for you?"

 _"Of course I've thought about it, Snips. That's why I need you to go to Malachor and find the Sith holocron. If the power the Chancellor told me about doesn't exist, then I'll know something's wrong."_

"Oh yeah, because there's nothing wrong about this situation in the first place."

Anakin grimaces. _"Snips, please."_

"Okay! But what if it does exist?" Ahsoka asks. "This power that we know not? This is the Dark Side of the Force we're talking about. What will you do?"

 _"I don't know."_ Anakin and Ahsoka stare at each other, both of them surprised at that. Ahsoka's eyebrow marks scrunch together in concern.

"I may not have any right to ask you this, but don't go somewhere I can't follow, Anakin. Please."

Anakin solemnly nods. _"Don't worry, Snips, you're stuck with me. Look, I know this is a risky trip. If you need credits, I can pay you for your trouble."_

"How do _you_ have credits?"

 _"Ah ah. I gotta keep some secrets for myself. Speaking of secrets, Padmé and I are going into hiding soon. Padmé's doing great, which makes me think that my visions are due to an assassination attempt. I won't take any chances."_

"What about the Council?"

Anakin grins. _"Someone once told me that they can't work with the Council if the Council wasn't going to trust them, and I've found that I agree with that sentiment."_

"Huh. Just like that?"

 _"It was a long time coming."_

"Have you told anyone else about going into hiding?"

 _"Just you, and I guess Riyo too if she's as smart enough to figure it out like Padmé says she is. I can't decide if I should tell the Chancellor."_

"Don't."

 _"What?"_

"Riyo told me that political offices leak, and I might have experienced it firsthand. If you tell the Chancellor your plans, then it'll be leaked, and it'll all be in vain. It doesn't matter if he turns out to be a good person or not, it'll still happen. If you don't tell anyone where you're going, or when you're going - not even me - then you and Padmé will be much more safe."

 _"Hmm. I'll talk to Padmé about it. Will you go to Malachor for me?"_

"I will. But only because you're my master and you're desperate."

 _"Thank you. May the Force be with you, Ahsoka."_

The call ends and Ahsoka sinks boneless into the couch. Malachor. Why did it have to be Malachor? After internally groaning about it for a minute, she sighs and sits up so that she can place another comlink call. Right before it goes to voicemail, it's picked up.

 _"Hello?"_ Asajj Ventress asks, her voice as dark as tinted glass. One elegant eyebrow goes up in surprise. _"Ahsoka Tano."_

"Hello, Ventress."

 _"How did you get this comlink code?"_

"Does it matter? I have a job for you."

 _"You want to hire me? To do what?"_

"I'm going to Malachor to steal a Sith holocron and I need a guide."

Asajj cackles. Ahsoka makes as if to interrupt, but Asajj holds up a hand. When she's done laughing, she wipes her eyes dry on the back of her hand.

 _"If you want to try the Dark Side of the Force so badly, you could just ask. I could give you some pointers."_

"No way," Ahsoka says, highly insulted. "It's strictly for research."

 _"So you say. Malachor's still not a place for tourists, Tano, you send people there to die."_

"I'm going to Malachor and I need a guide. You _were_ Sith, but you're not anymore. That means you could be that guide."

Asajj scowls. _"That's suicide and you know it."_

"I can pay you."

 _"How do_ you _have credits?"_

Ah, so that's how it feels like to be on the receiving end of that question. Ahsoka squares her shoulders and glares at the hologram.

"Credits are credits. Do you want in, or not?"

 _"What information could a Sith holocron possibly provide you?"_

"I'm doing this for a friend."

 _"So it's a job. You're getting paid to do this."_ Asajj strokes her tattooed chin in thought. _"I want half."_

Ahsoka sputters. "Twenty-five percent!"

 _"That's an insult and I should hang up right now. Forty-five."_

"Thirty!"

 _"Forty is as low as I go. I'm not going to thrice-damned Malachor for chicken poodoo, Tano."_

"Ugh," Ahsoka groans. "Fine. Forty percent. And you're providing the transport."

 _"You're lucky I already have a ship. Where are your coordinates? I'll pick you up tomorrow."_

* * *

Riyo's apartment technically has two bedrooms, but the second one has been converted into an office. Ahsoka lingers in the doorway and watches Riyo re-shelve stacks of data cards. She's been at it all day and now she's almost done. She sits on the floor so that she can shelve the few remaining stacks into the two lowest shelves. When Ahsoka finally comes in, she glances up at her before continuing her work.

"Hey you," Riyo says.

"Still have a hangover?"

"I've recovered. Is it time for dinner? Sorry, I got carried away with all of this."

"It's not that."

There will never be a good time to tell Riyo about her upcoming trip, so Ahsoka figures that she might as well just tell her.

"Anakin called."

Riyo chuckles and moves on to the next shelf down. "Is he mad about that bet with Padmé?"

"He needs me to do something for him."

Riyo glances at Ahsoka again and catches her stony demeanor. Her hands drop in her lap and she gives Ahsoka her full attention. "What did he ask you to do?"

"He needs me to go to Malachor."

Fear and disbelief leaks into Riyo's gold eyes. "What?"

"There's a Sith Holocron there that has information that could help him. I'm gonna get it for him."

Riyo looks hard at her, then bows her head to hide her face. She doesn't say anything.

"I know it sounds bad." Ahsoka sinks to her knees before Riyo, her hands open and pleading. "I know. Malachor's not just a bad Force thing; it's a bad _Galaxy thing_."

"Then don't do it. Please! People don't come back from that place."

"He needs help, and this is how I can help him."

"You could die."

"I'm still going. Anakin never abandoned me, and I won't abandon him."

Riyo looks away, blinking furiously. Ahsoka reaches for her, but she shakes her head and pulls away. Ahsoka feels as though she's been punched in the gut.

"Riyo, please."

"I cannot watch you destroy yourself."

"If Magnus asked you to do something nuts, you'd do it."

"Magnus would never ask me to do something like this in the first place!"

"But if he did, you would do it!" Ahsoka says. Riyo clenches her jaw. "I have to do this; he's desperate. I'll come back."

"What if you don't?"

"But I will!"

"Don't," _make promises you can't keep,_ remains unsaid.

"Anakin wouldn't ask me to do this if he thought I wouldn't be up to the task," Ahsoka says, her voice hard. One way or another, she will get through to Riyo. "He has faith in me. And now I ask you to have faith in me too."

Riyo finally looks at her. "It could still go so wrong," she whispers. Ahsoka leans forward and touches her forehead to hers.

"Do you trust me?"

"Yes."

"So trust me when I say I'll be back," Ahsoka says. "I'm a lot tougher than you think."

Resignation flickers across Riyo's face right before she closes the gap to put her mouth on Ahsoka's.

The kiss is hungry and desperate. Ahsoka is lost in the wet glide of Riyo's mouth and she presses forward, pinning Riyo onto the cool, wood floor. Riyo fists her hands in Ahsoka's shirt.

Ahsoka sneaks a hand under the hem of Riyo's shirt to feel the smooth plane of her stomach. Riyo's thin, but her body is soft, like she doesn't have any muscle. She jerks and too late, Ahsoka remembers the calluses on her palms, but instead of pulling away, Riyo gasps and catches her mouth again in a rough kiss.

Intrigued, Ahsoka lets her hands roam over Riyo's soft skin. She wants to trace her tattoos. She wants the unmarked places for herself. Ahsoka pulls away from the kiss so that she can latch onto the lovely pulse point of Riyo's neck.

 _Do we have Berko-8?_ R7 bleeps from the open doorway. _Kark. Get it._

Ahsoka breaks away from Riyo's throat with a growl, her eyes dark. "R7!" she roars.

 _Bye!_ R7 screams as he tears out of the apartment. Ahsoka turns back to look down at her handiwork. Riyo's gold eyes are unfocused, and her chest is already heaving for breath.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm good. Great," Riyo mumbles. "Help me up?"

"Sure." Ahsoka takes Riyo's hand and pulls her to her feet. Riyo doesn't let go, however, and she leads Ahsoka down the hall to the bedroom. Ahsoka shuts the door behind them.

* * *

Note Bene: It's a good thing R7's such a troll, otherwise I would've had to write a lewd, which is NOT IN THE OUTLINE, RIYO. THIS FIC IS RATED T. (All she was supposed to do was wish Ahsoka luck, not jump her bones. God.) I digress. Sometimes characters do what they want and you can't stop them.

Thank you for leaving comments and kudos and reviews! I cherish all the feedback that you readers give me.

I'll see you all next week.


	10. Lifted

Ahsoka wakes before the sun rises and spends a couple minutes just lying there, enjoying the feeling of Riyo sleeping in her arms. How riotous they must look; high noon and sunset all mixed together in one palette. Ahsoka smiles and kisses Riyo's brow, then carefully untangles herself from her.

She'll come come back to this, to Riyo. She has to.

When Ahsoka emerges from the refresher, washed and dressed, she finds the bed empty. The kitchen light is on. Ahsoka walks down the hallway and sees Riyo awake (for the most part) and dressed in an oversized shirt and pajama bottoms, prepping the caf maker.

Ahsoka clips her lightsabers to her belt and pulls Riyo into a tight hug. Riyo leans into her.

"You'll come back?" she whispers, her voice still thick with sleep. Ahsoka presses her cheek against the top of her head.

"I will." Ahsoka knows that she shouldn't make promises that she can't keep, but she figures that if she happens to break this one, and Riyo ends up hating her for it, then maybe she deserves to be hated.

* * *

Asajj's ship is a Lancer-class pursuit craft. Very sporty. Ahsoka pulls the hood of her parka tighter around her face and walks a lap around the ship with R7, just inspecting it.

R7 beeps, and Ahsoka bites her lip to keep from laughing.

"She'll throw you in the dump if she hears you say that." Ahsoka runs a hand along a purple and white metal panel. "Any ship can fly if it's given enough attention."

Ahsoka doesn't flinch when the loading ramp of the ship opens next to her. It settles on the pad with a heavy thud and she takes a tentative peak into the ship.

"Ventress?"

"Finally." Asajj, draped in a thick, black cloak against the cold, waits at the top of the ramp. She's got a helmet on to keep her ears warm, but the visor's up. "Are you getting on my ship or not?"

Ahsoka rolls her eyes and leads the way up the ramp. "You refurbished this ship yourself?"

"I did."

"That's impressive."

Asajj says nothing and instead pushes a button on the pad to close the ramp. She leads the way through the half-empty cargo hold and up to the cockpit, where she sheds her cloak and helmet. These, she drops over the back of the pilot's seat.

Ahsoka stares. Asajj, once bald, now sports a white buzz cut.

"Are you going to help me, or are you going to gawk at me all day?" Asajj asks.

"You have hair," Ahsoka says. She sheds her parka and sits in the co-pilot's seat.

"How observant of you."

"Ventress, come on. We're gonna be on this ship with each other for next couple of days. I'm trying to be nice."

Asajj runs through the pre-flight check and hails a control tower. "Come in Control. This is Banshee requesting permission for launch."

"Copy, Banshee, this is Control." The control tower comes through the comlink in the dashboard. "You are clear for launch."

Asajj flies the ship out of the Pantoran atmosphere, then, just as Ahsoka's about to give up on her, she rolls her eyes and says, "you're taller."

Ahsoka looks down at herself, as if searching for evidence. "Really?"

"Definitely. Not so much the whelp you were before. I heard that you turned down the Jedi's offer to rejoin their order."

Ahsoka's confused until she remembers that the Asajj she saw on Ilum wasn't real. "Yes, I did."

"Why?"

"Would you take an offer that Count Dooku made you?"

Asajj's face wrinkles into a sneer. "Good point."

R7 enters Malachor's coordinates and Asajj activates the hyperdrive. She and Ahsoka sit in silence for a moment.

"For what it's worth, I'm glad you didn't rejoin the Order."

Ahsoka isn't sure what to say to that. "Is that a new lightsaber?"

"Yes," Asajj says. When her old lightsabers were found in Barriss Offee's possession, they were taken in as evidence. Without a voucher to claim them, she will never get them back.

"I didn't feel like making my own, so I bought one off the black market."

"Sith make their own lightsabers?" Ahsoka asks.

"I didn't make those lightsabers; they were a present. But yes, I have made a lightsaber before."

"Wanna spar?"

"You should know better than to ask that, Tano. I've always wiped the floor with you."

"Every single one of those fights ended when you turned around and ran," Ahsoka says. "Like you got scared. Maybe you're still scared, I don't know. That's okay. I guess we'll just never know which one of us really is the best duelist."

"Droid," Asajj deadpans. R7 shudders, but beeps nonetheless. "Can you pilot this ship?"

R7 whistles.

"Good." Asajj summons her lightsaber into her hand and adjusts the power setting. When she turns, Ahsoka is already running into cargo bay of the ship, laughing.

"You're too easy, Ventress!"

"I'll show you easy, you brat!" Asajj leaps up and follows her.

Ahsoka, like her master Anakin before her, is a Shien form fighter, which is pretty aggressive for a Light Side style. Asajj will never admit it, but while she was Sith, she was also just as—if not more—aggressive. The beginning of the fight is familiar to Asajj, with Ahsoka making powerful strikes and Asajj defending against them. If Asajj isn't careful, she'll be overwhelmed.

But now that Asajj is free of the blinding rage of the Dark Side, she's doing surprisingly well. She keeps her yellow blade in constant motion against Ahsoka's relentless attacks, searching for possible openings.

Ahsoka pools the Force in her legs and jumps away. She lands on her feet on a tall stack of crates.

"You're different," she says, almost accusingly.

"Yes, we've established that I have hair now."

"No, not just that. You're not hack and slash anymore. You fight like…like Master Shaak Ti."

"You mention them like I should know who they are."

"Let me try something." Ahsoka deactivates her shoto and clips it back to her belt, then jumps back down. She even switches out of her reverse grip. "If I do this…."

Ahsoka attacks, and Asajj defends. Three slashes later, and Asajj plants a glancing blow, as precise as a scalpel, against Ahsoka's shoulder. Because the safety is on, Ahsoka's unhurt, but it still stings.

"Ah!" Ahsoka shakes her left arm out. "Yeah, that's what I mean! Your fighting style, it's a lot more focused than it used to be. How are you doing that?"

"Makashi," Asajj says. "Count Dooku taught it to me, but it's only now that I have proper mastery over it."

"Can you show me?"

"Show you? I'm not a performing monkey-lizard, Tano."

"Uh-huh." Ahsoka attacks again, but only to make Asajj react. While they fight, Ahsoka watches her with a quiet intensity that Asajj has never seen from her before.

"Interesting," Ahsoka says. She steps back and, even though Asajj is sure that Ahsoka's never studied Makashi before, she watches as Ahsoka does a few familiar moves. "Like that?"

"Goodbye." Asajj deactivates her lightsaber and switches the safety off. She clips it back to her belt. "I am not teaching you, Tano."

"Aw, but you're good at it!"

"How dare you," Asajj says. In her mind, she gets the unbidden image of the skinny twerp of a youngling Ahsoka used to be, only she's not Anakin's padawan, she's hers. Asajj resists the urge to vomit. As complicated as their relationship is, it's still safe to say that there is no way it will ever get to that point. Asajj turns to leave. "Don't goad me into starting again either. I'm done."

* * *

The closer they get to Malachor, the colder it gets. It reminds Ahsoka of Mortis, and of the Son, and also of her Republic Tribunal for some reason. R7 lands the ship and opens the loading ramp, revealing the bleak, desolate wasteland of Malachor.

Ahsoka waits at the top of the ramp and feels how wrong this entire planet is. It makes her teeth itch. She can't even see very far thanks to thick, greenish-brown clouds of smog. These clouds even blot out the sun. In the distance, she can just make out strange rock formations like giant nails hammered into the surface of the planet. Next to her, Asajj raises the visor of her helmet and curls her upper lip in distaste.

"I thought I was shot of miserable places like this."

"Stay with the ship, R7," Ahsoka says. She turns to Asajj. "So where to now?"

"You're not going to like it." Asajj leads the way down the ramp and to one of the tall rocks. "Have you ever been to a Sith Shrine before?"

"No."

"Then this should be an educational experience for you." Asajj peers up at the looming rock. It's covered in Old Tongue, a language that Ahsoka recognizes from her lessons as a youngling. Asajj strokes a finger down the surface of the rock, leaving behind a trail of angry red light. It ripples out over the rest of the rock and shoots below the surface. There's an ominous cracking noise.

The visor of Asajj's helmet drops down over her face and she summons her lightsaber to her hand. "Prepare yourself." The modulator in the visor warps her voice.

"For what?" Ahsoka asks. She screams as the ground dissolves from under their feet, plunging them into the depths of the planet. Asajj activates her lightsaber and plunges it into the side of the great rock, slashing through the carvings and slowing her descent. She reaches out with the Force and grabs Ahsoka, stopping her fall midair.

"Whoa!" Ahsoka balls up to avoid being hit by the falling rocks.

"I've always wanted to drop you down a hole," Asajj shouts down at her.

"Ha ha," Ahsoka deadpans. "I got it from here, thanks."

Asajj lets go of Ahsoka, then deactivates her lightsaber so that she can drop down too. The both of them use the Force to pad their landings and stand up as if nothing's happened. Asajj's visor lifts up again.

"I can't believe that epic was right," Ahsoka says.

"What do you mean?" Asajj asks. Asoka gestures to this inner level of Malachor. The surface of the Malachor was bad, but this is much worse. She can barely make out the shape of ruins in the landscape. Everything's dark and charred, as if a wildfire's long engulfed the entire planet.

"A playwright—I forget his name—but he wrote about a Malachor that has different levels; one for each major sin or something."

"How apt." Asajj says with a wry smile. "And I suppose this level is purgatory. Come on, this way."

The two of them make their way through the ruins of the planet towards the Sith shrine that looms in the distance. It's not hard to pick it out; it's the only building that's still intact. Asajj leads the way through more ruins and even the frozen remains of ancient Jedi and Sith, still locked in battle after all this time. Ahsoka pauses by one body—the hands lifted over their head as if to strike their lightsaber down on their opponent—and notices that it's covered in ash, hardened into a shell. The body inside would be long gone by now, leaving only bones.

"This is a tomb," Ahsoka says. "This is a graveyard."

"So many people dead," Asajj says. "And for what? Nothing changed. There will always be Sith and Jedi. You cannot have one without the other."

"The Sith bring suffering and destruction. You can't say that trying to prevent that is useless."

"Without death, life is meaningless. Would people truly covet peace if they did not know chaos?"

Ahsoka frowns. "I've never thought of it that way before."

Asajj looks mildly at her. "Beware, Tano. Sith Philosophy is a slippery slope."

"That was Sith Philosophy?" Ahsoka asks. Asajj smirks.

"Indeed. It takes truths and logic and twists them around into something ugly. You could justify any depraved thing you wanted with it."

The two of them reach the base of the shrine. The entrance is blocked by a slab of stone.

"How do we get in?" Ahsoka asks.

"You lift up the stone," Asajj says. "You'll need the Dark Side of the Force."

"I'm not using the Dark Side."

"Suit yourself. Ready?"

"Ready," Ahsoka says. She lifts her hands and concentrates. The stone is comparable to the giant slabs of rock that make up the wall that guards the shrine on Ilum, but it's imbued with the Dark Side of the Force. It's sticky and obstinate and deceptively massive, and as soon as Ahsoka reaches out to move it through the Force, it screams out at her in mutiny. Ahsoka clenches her teeth. There is no way she is giving up now, and there is no way she is dipping into the Dark Side just to move this stone. She'll just have to prove that she's good enough. Ahsoka inhales and lifts. The stone shivers, then rises off the floor, revealing the next slab.

"Interesting," Asajj says. She leads the way into the space that Ahsoka's just opened up. Ahsoka follows her in and grunts from exertion, keeping the slab from falling in on their heads. Asajj snarls and cloaks herself in the Dark Side of the Force, then uses it to lift the next stone. Once they're under that stone, Asajj tells Ahsoka to drop hers and lift the third one.

"Are you kidding me?" Ahsoka shouts. She's just used a phenomenal amount of Force just moving that first stone and now she has to do it again?

"Do it, Tano!" Asajj shouts back. Her hands shake under the weight of her stone. "There are only five of them."

When Ahsoka and Asajj get past the final stone, Ahsoka bends over and puts her hands on her knees.

"Ugh."

"Deep breaths. How were you able to lift those stones without the Dark Side?" Asajj asks.

"I don't know, I just assumed I could. Jedi Masters can do so many things with the Force, so I figure it's only a matter of practice until I can too." Ahsoka straightens up.

The two of them walk down a dark hallway that opens up into an enormous room. They find themselves on a ledge and before them, in the middle of the room, is a platform that holds the Sith holocron. Ahsoka peers over the edge of the ledge, but can't see the floor of the room.

"What are we gonna do? Jump?"

"Are you Force-sensitive or not?" Asajj asks. She reaches out and summons the Sith holocron to her. It slaps into the palm of her hand. After inspecting it for a second, she tosses it over to Ahsoka, who catches it with both hands. "There you go, one Sith holocon."

Ahsoka turns the red and gold pyramid over in her hands and gets the inexplicable urge to wash them. She frowns. "I won't be able to open it, huh?"

"Not unless you draw upon the Dark Side," Asajj says.

"So like a pure form of one emotion?" Ahsoka squints. "Do you think maybe…Attachment would work? What if I concentrated on that?"

"Sith don't do Attachments. They lead to love, which leads to mercy. Weakness."

Ahsoka stares. "Really?"

"You mean to tell me that love doesn't factor into Jedi Philosophy? I thought it did, with all their talk about compassion and harmony."

"It doesn't. Jedi Philosophy tends to shy away from anything too…intense. Guess I can't open it, then." Ahsoka tosses the holocron back to Asajj, who catches it. "Please?"

Asajj rolls her eyes. "Maybe when we're back on the ship. I'm not staying here more than I need to."

"Good point." The two of them turn around and go back the way they came.

"Why does your friend want this holocron anyway? What do they need to know about the Sith?"

"He needs information about a…Darth Plagueis? He said he had the power to bring people back to life, or something."

"I've heard of this Darth Plagueis," Asajj says. "But I've never heard of him reversing death. I don't think that's possible, Sith or no."

Ahsoka's living proof that it's possible, but she isn't about to tell Asajj that. "We won't know until we open that thing up."

"Speaking of opening things." Asajj places the holocron into a slot sunk into the wall. The stones blocking the doorway rise up in unison, leaving the way clear.

"Thank you," Ahsoka says. Asajj takes the holocron back from the wall and tucks it into her tabard. As soon as they exit the shrine, the stones sink back down with a final thud.

Ahsoka's comlink beeps and she looks at her wrist.

"Missed calls?"

"The shrine walls must have blocked the signal," Asajj says. Ahsoka presses a couple buttons to call back.

"R7? What's going on?"

R7 beeps almost too fast for Ahsoka to keep up.

"Wait, wait. What do you mean there's another ship?"

R7 beeps and whistles some more.

"Maul?" Ahsoka asks.

"Darth Maul?" Asajj asks. "I know him. We should go."

"I'm not running from Maul," Ahsoka says. "Let him come."

"And here I am."

Asajj and Ahsoka turn around, lightsabers activated and at the ready, to see Maul perched over the doorway of the Sith shrine. They would have felt his presence sooner, but the Sith shrine, and Malachor itself, are too imbued with the Dark Side of the Force. Trying to pick Maul out from that murky mess is like trying to spot a single ruined pixel in a holoscreen.

Maul leaps onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. "You have something I want. Give it to me."

The visor of Asajj's helmet closes over her face once more.

"You want it?" Ahsoka asks. She flips her lightsabers into the reverse grip and drops into a stance. "Come and get it."

Maul activates his double-blade lightsaber and sends a Force-push at them. Ahsoka pushes back in time, but Asajj flies into the surrounding gloom of Mortis with a shout. Maul rushes at Ahsoka and brings his lightsaber down with a vengeance.

Maul's fighting style is ferocious. Ahsoka's never fought against anything like it before, and she finds herself on defense under his relentless combination attacks, their lightsaber blades blur in the darkness. She can see why Asajj is intimidated, but despite being the target of a powerful onslaught, she's not overwhelmed. She's not even giving up any ground. Amazingly enough, she's meeting him strike for strike, with the both of them neither retreating or advancing on the other. Ahsoka is mindful to keep moving, to keep herself away from the shrine wall so that she doesn't get cornered.

Ahsoka thinks of her sparring session with Asajj and gets an idea. Precise. Control. When Maul takes his next step, Ahsoka jerks on the Force with her pinky, summoning his heel forward and throwing his footwork off. Maul stumbles, his eyes wide, and Ahsoka slashes down at his head. He jerks away in time, and lashes out to push her away, but Ahsoka still smiles. It's not a dignified way to use the Force at all, but it works, and Ahsoka's going to keep doing it.

Ahsoka begins to counterattack with the Force and her lightsabers. It's as simple as pushing his shoulder back while he's mid-swing, or tapping on his kneecap to keep him from stepping forward. These small things throw Maul off his rhythm and open him up to attacks and soon, Ahsoka's able to advance on him.

Despite the turn of the fight, she still can't land a hit on Maul. He's nimble and acrobatic, and every time she jabs or slashes at him, he's already dodged it and is attacking her in turn. Ahsoka pinches Maul's nose shut with the Force and Maul shakes his head and roars.

"Enough!" Maul does a back flip and lands a little ways away. Ahsoka can feel the frustration rolling off of him. "Who are you, Jedi?"

"Ahsoka Tano."

"I've heard of you," Maul says. "You were all over HNN a week ago. You were charged with bombing the Jedi shrine."

"I was acquitted," she says. "You, however, have a lot to answer for!"

"Then by all means, try to capture me."

A column comes out of the darkness and slams into Maul, sending him into the wall of the shrine. Asajj steps into the light, her arms outstretched. They share a look before Asajj must jump out of the way of the column as it's sent back at her.

CRACK.

The column smashes into the ground, cracking into pieces. Maul roars as he pulls himself out of the hole he's made in the destroyed wall. His legs catch in the jagged edges and Maul furiously cuts himself out with his lightsaber. Ahsoka crouches, as if she's about to lift something heavy, and uses the Force to pick up another column. She does a little hop-skip and throws the column at Maul like a javelin, then leaps off into the darkness, deactivating her lightsabers as she goes.

Maul jumps out of the way of the column just in time, letting it slam into the side of the shrine. As soon as he lands, Ahsoka barrels at him in a flash of white light, catching him on the outside of a mechanical thigh. Maul flips away and looks down at the gash in his leg in astonishment, then looks back up at Ahsoka. His frustration turns into roiling anger, but Ahsoka only sets her jaw in a determined scowl.

"You will pay!" Maul screams, sounding very much like a youngling throwing a temper tantrum. Ahsoka pulls the Force in around her and leaps at him, bringing her lightsabers to bear. This time, her white blades are joined by a beam of yellow. Asajj and Ahsoka attack Maul from two sides, putting him on the defense. They still can't hit him though, because now he's drawing power and focus from his rage; a far more potent emotion than just annoyance and frustration. He's become faster that before, and his strikes more forceful. Ahsoka's hands tingle and become numb from blocking against him.

Maul whirls around and chops right through Asajj's lightsaber, making the stump fizzle and spark, then banishes her once again. Her helmet cracks against a stone as she lands on the ground.

"Ventress!" Ahsoka shouts, but Asajj lies still. Ahsoka blocks a vicious strike from Maul that almost goes through her right lek.

"Eyes on me," he snarls and lifts his lightsaber high. Ahsoka grits her teeth and pushes the buttons on his lightsaber, deactivating both blades. Maul swings down, but only catches air. He growls and activates his lightsaber once more, and their fight begins anew.

Maul's getting tired. The well of power he's dipping into only lasts him so long and Ahsoka's only getting started, and she knows it. Ahsoka bares her teeth and slaps Maul around the ears with the Force, making him flinch, then steps in close and slices through Maul's lightsaber, cutting it in half. Maul stumbles back in surprise and opens himself up to the front kick that Ahsoka plants in his stomach, sending him sprawling into the dust and ash. The two halves of his lightsaber clatter over the ground.

Maul grabs a fistful of ash and throws it into Ahsoka's face.

"Ack!" Ahsoka steps back and wipes the grit from her eyes on the back of her wrist. It's enough to give Maul time to summon both halves of his lightsaber. When he activates them, one of the halves fizzles out, and he throws it away in disgust. The other half is still intact, and he hefts that in his hands, ready for Ahsoka's next attack. A few seconds of fighting, however, reveals how dependent he's become on his double lightsaber, and what little defensive skill he's had before is easily bypassed. Ahsoka lands a cut on the outside of Maul's other thigh, then on his knee, taking one of his mechanical legs out of operation.

"Ah!" Maul lands onto his ruined knee in a shower of sparks. Ahsoka kicks his lightsaber out of his hand and levels the tip of her lightsaber blade at his throat.

"You are beaten. Yield," Ahsoka says, breathing heavily. Maul growls, but she clips his bicep in warning.

"Ah!" Maul claps a hand over his wound. "You should kill me while you still have the chance, Lady Tano."

Ahsoka scowls. She really should kill him. Force, she should. But she deactivates her lightsabers and clips them onto her belt.

"That's not the Jedi way," she says, and she turns around and runs off to Asajj, who still lies unconscious on the ground. Ahsoka kneels next to her and rolls her over.

"Ventress?" Ahsoka feels over the sides of the helmet for the button that lifts the visor. She finds it, and the visor pops up. "Ventress, wake up. Ventress!" Ahsoka shakes the older woman's shoulders. "Asajj!"

Asajj groans. "Will you shut up?"

Ahsoka sighs in relief and leans back. "Come on, we gotta go."

"Ah." Asajj sits up, holding her head. "What about Maul?"

"I…" but Ahsoka stops when her heart drops into her stomach. Her Force Sense. Ahsoka takes her lightsaber in hand and turns around just in time to block a downward chop from Maul. He's found a piece of wood and is using it as a cane to compensate for his leg.

"I TOLD YOU!" Maul rages as he rains blows down upon Ahsoka's blade. Asajj rolls away to regroup. "YOU SHOULD HAVE KILLED ME!"

Ahsoka sweeps Maul's legs out from under him, making him fall into the dirt. She leans back to dodge his blade, but she doesn't get away fast enough. Maul swings his lightsaber up and the tip slices through Ahsoka's sternum.

It's a shallow cut, not deep enough to catch any internal organs underneath, but it still cuts through bone and Ahsoka crumples. Her world narrows down to the creaking of her ribs and the fire in her chest. It smells like burning and iron and she wants to scream, but can't. She can't even breathe, because every movement she makes is agony.

This is probably it, she thinks, but another part of her, stubborn and defiant to the last, screams at her to get up. Get up! If she gives up now, then her punk ass will have died at Maul's hands and Force, how humiliating would that be? Get up! Get up, Ahsoka! Right now. Do it.

Ahsoka screams as she rolls onto her hands and knees. There's a moment where she wants to vomit, but it passes and she staggers to her feet. She can't stand up straight though; she hunches over a little from pain.

A little ways away, Asajj is fighting Maul with Ahsoka's lightsabers, the both of them snarling at each other. Maul's compensating for his knee by moving it around with the Force, and Asajj seems to be holding her own for now, but she isn't going to be enough to stop him. Ahsoka knows it, and they must know it too. If Ahsoka doesn't do something, and fast, then she and Asajj are not getting off this planet.

Ahsoka touches a hand to the ruin of her chest and the fingertips come away with blood. Through the haze of pain, Ahsoka reaches out to the Force once more and cloaks herself in It. She pours It into the wound in her chest to mute the pain and soon, there's so much of the Force in her system that spots of color begin to flicker and dance across her vision. She feels weightless, like if she jumps just right, she'll break free of this planet's gravity.

"MAUL!" she shouts. Maul and Asajj break apart and look at her. Asajj sees the blood dribbling down the front of Ahsoka's dress and her bared teeth and leaps out of the line of fire.

"Still alive?" Maul asks. He chuckles and does a lazy twirl with his lightsaber. "I'll make this quick."

Ahsoka raises her hands and brings the Force upon Maul, stopping him in his tracks. Confusion passes over his face and his lightsaber drops from his fingers. He sneers and draws upon the Dark Side, trying to match Ahsoka and free himself.

The Force jumps from Ahsoka's fingertips, eager to do her bidding. There is no malice behind Ahsoka's use. No anger. There is only the overwhelming desire to neutralize a threat. Ahsoka and Maul stay at a standstill for a couple moments before the Light Side rises up and overwhelms Maul, trapping him in place. For the first time since the beginning of the fight, open terror shows on Maul's face. He can't move. He can't move. Ahsoka clenches her fists and Maul's mechanical legs implode. His thighs are crushed, as if squeezed by gigantic fists, and both of his knees explode to bits. Maul falls to the ground and watches the rest of his legs twist into scrap.

"You should've ran away while you still had the chance," Ahsoka whispers, but her voice still carries on this empty planet. She shuffles forward. Maul scoots backwards on his hands, desperate to get away. Before Ahsoka can get closer, he screams.

"MERCY! Mercy, Lady Tano. I beg you."

Ahsoka cannot believe how stupid he thinks she is. "Have fun on the moon, Maul." She shoves, and Maul goes flying into oblivion, his scream growing faint as he crashes through the upper crust of Malachor and off into the atmosphere. Finally done, Ahsoka releases her hold on the Force and wobbles. The pain in her chest comes back, but is second to her exhaustion.

"Asajj?" she calls out.

"I'm here," Asajj says. She comes out of hiding and runs up to her.

"Good," Ahsoka says. She collapses into the dirt.

"Tano!" Asajj rolls her over and checks her pulse. "Tano, wake up! Ahsoka? Dammit." She presses the comlink button on her vambrace. "Droid! Bring the ship to our location, your master's hurt."

Asajj doesn't bother listening to R7's reply and slaps Ahsoka's cheek. "Stay with me, you brat!"

"Ugh."

"That's better. Come on." Asajj pulls Ahsoka's arm over her shoulder and gets her to her feet. Ahsoka groans.

"I'm gonna die."

"You're not going to die," Asajj says. She curls an arm around Ahsoka's waist to keep her from collapsing again. Ahsoka, delirious from blood loss and pain, keeps muttering things under her breath.

"I can't believe I'm gonna break that promise."

"What promise?"

"Riyo's gonna hate me."

"Who is Riyo?"

Ahsoka sniffles, then groans again. "Kriff, it hurts to cry. I can't even cry now."

"Will you get a grip?" Asajj asks. She stops when the Banshee flies down to them, the loading ramp already open. Asajj half carries Ahsoka onto the ship and shouts at R7 to get them off this planet. R7 beeps and flies the ship out.

* * *

Asajj lays Ahsoka out on the floor of the cargo hold and summons the first aid kit from a storage closet in the wall. She opens it up and finds a medisensor, an array of Bacta products, and some tape and gauze. Asajj takes up a bottle of liquid Bacta and turns to Ahsoka.

"This might hurt."

"Huh?"

Asajj unscrews the cap and pours the Bacta into Ahsoka's chest. The smell of burning and blood is overpowered by sickly sweet.

"Will you tell Riyo that I'm sorry?" Ahsoka whispers.

"What? No!" Asajj says. She caps the bottle and tears open a Bacta patch. "You can tell them yourself when you're better."

"No, you don't…you don't understand," Ahsoka whispers as Asajj puts the Bacta patch over her wound. "She was worried that something might happen so I told her that I'd come back. I said I would."

"Oh of all the insipid…." Asajj rolls her eyes and leans back so she can shout down the hallway. "Droid! Do you know what she's talking about?"

R7 whistles.

"Don't sass me! I asked you a question."

R7 beeps.

"Senator Riyo Chuchi?"

"Riyo," Ahsoka mumbles.

"You, shut up," Asajj says to her. "You, take us to her," Asajj shouts at R7.

* * *

Note Bene: Take that, Maul, you pathetic sack of shit. I read an interview that the show runner did and he planned to have Ahsoka fight Maul and she would have absolutely kicked his ass. I hope I did that fight justice. I'm better at writing unarmed combat than I am with swords.

This chapter brings this story's word count past 50k! And serves as the halfway point in this story. Thanks so much for sticking with me so far. Please leave comments, concerns, or anything else. You're all so very gracious and I appreciate all the feedback you've been giving me. Even if it's one word or a tiny thought, they still make my day.

Want more "Launch Date?" Follow me on tumblr. My username's "artyblogs." I post headcanons, commentary on chapters, and links to music that inspired some scenes.


	11. Carry That Weight

It takes Magnus and Riyo one hour by pickup speeder to reach the outskirts of civilization, and another half hour to drive past all the permafrost farmland that rings around that. The land that stretches out afterwards is thick with forest.

During a Snow Walk, people go out in the wilderness and survive of a few days. They put themselves at the mercy of the Blizzard God. Snow Walks can last between two days to one whole standard year, and male Pantorans earn the right to their first tattoos after the completion of their first Snow Walk.

Hardcore Pantorans do Snow Walks out in the tundra, but these are the same people who do them while equipped with only a hand-blaster, a knife, and the clothes on their back. People attempting these kinds of Snow Walks for the first time are usually brought into hospitals; trapped in pseudo-hibernations. Some don't recover.

There's no way Magnus is taking Riyo on a Snow Walk that intense. He's too old, and as capable as Riyo is, she doesn't know how to start a fire from scratch. So they're here in the forest, and in the back of the speeder are two survival kits, one for Magnus, and one for Riyo.

The two Pantorans are dressed in tough pants, boots, and sleeveless shirts, putting their tattoos on display. Like how a few Pantorans can read tattoos like text, so can the Gods. It's polite to introduce yourself whenever you go into someone else's house, so Snow Walkers keep their tattoos uncovered so that the Blizzard God knows exactly who they are. Magnus, who has full chest and back tattoos that tell about his decorated military service, sheds his shirt as soon as they exit the speeder.

Riyo hefts her pack over her shoulders. The woods are deep and solemn. Pristine snow dusts the ground and the trees like powdered sugar. Magnus locks the speeder, then leads the way into the forest. They walk in silence for a few minutes, navigating between tall, frozen boulders, over fallen trees, and around other obstacles.

"Where are we?" Riyo asks.

"You don't know?"

"No."

"That'll do." Magnus stops in the middle of a clearing and takes off his pack. He kneels with it on the ground, opens it up, and takes out a thermos, and two sets of tracking devices. Magnus unscrews the lid off the thermos, letting out a cloud of steam. He drinks from it then hands it to Riyo. She swirls the contents and smells herbs and something musty.

"What kind of tea is this?" she asks.

"Frost Shield," Magnus says. She freezes.

"How much do I drink?"

"Not all of it. Not just a sip either. As much as you want."

Riyo lifts the thermos to her lips and takes a couple gulps of tea. It's bitter and earthy and she grimaces as she lowers the thermos and screws the cap back on.

"Now what?"

Magnus clips one tracker to his belt and gives the output to Riyo, then he clips the other tracker to the collar of her shirt.

"Just in case," he says. "Remember to be honest." He frowns as he looks over Riyo's shoulder.

"What is it?" She asks.

"I saw something move," Magnus says. Riyo turns to look, but sees nothing.

"It's the tea," Riyo says, but Magnus picks up his pack and steps around her to investigate.

"Of course it's the tea, but it don't mean whatever you see isn't important. If I don't come back in five minutes, then it's alright. You have my tracker and you have a comlink."

"You're leaving me here?"

"I'll be…." Magnus trails off and looks into the forest again. "I'll be back for you." And with that, he slips between the trees and disappears.

For one moment, Riyo feels cheated. She looks at the thermos in her hand and wonders why she isn't feeling or seeing anything. At least she isn't nauseous.

The world tilts and rushes up to meet her. She bursts through the surface of the ground the same way one would fall into a swimming pool and tumbles around, weightless, in the dark. It feels like she's spinning around in her own skull, like she's been wearing her body all of her life, but can't really escape it, and so she sinks deeper into the infinite recesses of her mind instead.

The darkness doesn't last. Vague flickers of sensation and emotion fire around her in a confusing mix of sound and color. She doesn't know how she's seeing or hearing anything without any eyes or ears, but supposes that she'll miss the point if she dwells too much on technicalities.

The heart monitor flatlines. A younger and smaller Riyo watches the straight line on the monitor and is consumed by how unfair this all this. What will she do now?

An older Riyo holds her hands out to a pretty, red Twi'lek girl, only to have her shy away from her touch.

"Cerise, please." Riyo says, even though there's nothing she can do to keep this from happening.

"You keep publishing those damning articles of yours and they'll come for you," the Twi'lek says. "You know it. I know it, and I can't be a part of it anymore. I'm sorry, Riyo."

But she's more scared than she's sorry. Riyo turns away.

"I'd die for our people." Cho wheezes; that Talz spear must have went right through his lung. "I'd…die…."

Riyo's thrown for a loop, and when she slows to a stop, she's lying on a cold, metal table.

Don't look.

Riyo shuts her eyes and presses back into the table as the flat of a blade taps against the underside of her chin, keeping her from turning away. She gets the sudden urge to talk and quickly.

"I couldn't stop Chairman Cho from dying," she says. "I'm not a warrior; my hands were not made for fighting. My weapons are words, and he refused to listen to me."

The presence in front of her shifts and the blade disappears from her throat. A light shines into her face and she opens her eyes. Someone looms over her, their face hidden in shadow.

"Is she yours to give?" they ask.

Before Riyo can answer, she falls up off the table, out of the room, back into her mind and then up to the tangible world. The surface of the ground solidifies under her, leaving her lying there in the clearing in the forest, breathless.

Above her, Magnus swims into focus and he sits back, relieved. "There you are."

"Magnus? This is real now?"

"So you saw things?"

"I think He hates me," Riyo says.

"If He hated you, you would've overdosed on that tea," Magnus says. He offers Riyo a hand and pulls her to her feet. "What did you see?"

"A parade of bad memories. Just one right after the other."

"That's how He knows how tough someone is."

"And I saw…something else. I can't explain it."

"He gave you a warning then," Magnus says. "He must have thought you could handle it."

BEEP.

Magnus's comlink lights up and he unclips it from his belt.

"It's Ahsoka's droid," he says as he takes the call.

The forest is filled with R7's panicked screaming.

* * *

Riyo stands at the foot of Ahsoka's hospital bed, watching. Ahsoka is still unconscious, a ventilator mask pulled over her face. A thin tube snakes in under the collar of her hospital scrubs and roots in her chest. This tube drips fresh Bacta directly into her wound through the sanitized Bacta patch. Riyo covers her mouth with a trembling hand and tries to keep despair from welling up in her throat.

"Senator Chuchi?" The doctor, a muscular Pantoran with tattoos covering even their fingers and palms, steps into the room with a data pad.

"Uh." Riyo quickly wipes her eyes on the heel of her hand. "Yes?"

"I'm Dr. Jago. Ahsoka Tano was assigned to my care." The doctor steps closer, their voice careful and concerned.

"Hello, Doctor. How…how is she?"

"It looks a lot worse than it is. Usually, when patients come in with sternal injuries, they also come in with internal injuries as well. That was not the case with your friend. A large part of her sternum was missing, so we cloned a replacement bone and fit it in with the remains of the original, like a jigsaw puzzle. Then we reattached all the muscles and tendons. The Bacta should knit everything together overnight and once that's done, she should be able to breathe on her own, so we'll take her off of the ventilation machine."

Riyo says nothing.

"Is she Force-sensitive?" Dr. Jago asks.

"Yes, does that help?"

"I've treated Force-sensitives before and in my experience, they're very hardy. Her recuperation period will be incredibly short compared to non-sensitives."

"When will she wake up?"

"The anesthesia we used during surgery will wear off soon, so she should wake up either later today or tomorrow. If she's feeling a lot of pain, then let a nurse know and we'll get her on morphine."

"Thank you, Doctor," Riyo says. Dr. Jago puts a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry, Senator. She's a tough, young woman and she'll come around." Dr. Jago turns and leaves the room, leaving Riyo alone with Ahsoka.

Riyo pulls the visitor's chair closer to the bed, then sits down. The only sounds in the room are the small beeps of the heart monitor and the steady pumps of the breathing machine. Riyo covers her eyes with a hand and sighs.

The door whooshes open.

"Magnus," Riyo says, "please, not now."

"Is that your bodyguard's name?"

Riyo almost falls out of the chair at the sound of Asajj Ventress's voice. Asajj oozes danger and grace, with a pointed jawline that's liable to cut. She sinks into another visitor's chair that's tucked into the corner of the room.

"Stop cringing, Senator, I'm not here to hurt you," Asajj says as she crosses her long legs.

"How can I believe that? You and Ahsoka have a complicated past."

"I saved Ahsoka's life. If she dies, I don't get paid."

"I forgot; you're a bounty hunter now. So you went with Ahsoka to Malachor?"

"Yes. The credits made it worth my while."

"How could you let this happen?"

Asajj sneers. "Excuse you? This was not my fault."

Riyo opens her mouth to say something, but Asajj cuts her off. "Hush! I will not be lectured to. I understand that I'm an easy target for you to pile your frustrations on, but it does not mean I will tolerate such treatment."

Riyo almost spits, but turns away and takes a calming breath.

"So Ahsoka almost got a boob sliced off," Asajj says. "It happens to the best of us. What matters is that she's here, isn't she? What matters is that she's alive."

"But it's all about the credits to you, isn't it? Do you even care what happens to her?"

Asajj and Riyo stare at each other with narrowed eyes for a moment.

"No," Asajj finally says. Riyo tilts her head.

"Ventress, you…?"

"I said 'no!'" Asajj says. She shifts in her seat. "I couldn't care less!"

The both of them fall into a stunned silence. Asajj's ice blue eyes snap back up to Riyo's.

"Not a word," she says. Riyo jerks her head in a way that could be taken for a nod.

"These are hers." Asajj unclips Ahsoka's lightsabers from her belt and levitates them across the room to Riyo. They drop into Riyo's hands and she gasps in surprise.

"What is it?" Asajj asks.

Riyo hefts the lightsabers. "They're heavy."

Asajj rolls her eyes at Riyo's pitiful upper body strength. "All lightsabers are heavy. My last lightsaber was three pounds at least, and that one was on the smaller end of the scale."

"But she handles them like they weigh nothing." Riyo pulls open a bedside table drawer to find Ahsoka's clothes and belongings. She places the lightsabers over Ahsoka's dress, then rummages a little more. When she doesn't find what she's looking for, she turns back to Asajj.

"Do you have the Sith holocron?"

"I do." Asajj reaches into her tabard and takes it out. "Ahsoka mentioned needing knowledge of this Darth Plagueis 'for a friend.' I don't suppose you know who this friend of hers is?"

"No," Riyo says, still staring at the holocron. There's something unnerving about it.

"Oh, so you do know," Asajj says.

Riyo glares. "Don't read my mind."

"So if Ahsoka's still not awake by the time her friend calls, then you can tell them what I found," Asajj says, totally ignoring Riyo's request. She holds the holocron in both hands and shifts in her chair, getting comfortable. "I suggest you be quiet while I do this."

Riyo nods and lowers her hand over Ahsoka's. Satisfied, Asajj closes her eyes and begins to meditate. A chill goes up Riyo's spine, and she ducks closer to Ahsoka. She gets the immediate impression that although she doesn't know what's happening, she must not look away, not even for a second. If she does, then Asajj, and the Sith holocron that levitates in her hands, will somehow gut her and Ahsoka both.

The corners of the holocron turn and split from the main part, and the light trapped inside escapes and throws angry red light all over the hospital room. Asajj doesn't seem to notice and stays silent and still.

After a few minutes, Asajj shudders and closes the holocron. The red light vanishes, and Riyo straightens up. Asajj places the holocron on the small table at the foot of Ahsoka's bed, her nose wrinkled in disgust.

"I need a damn drink after that. Do you want to know what I've found?"

"Yes," Riyo says.

Asajj tells her, then sweeps out of the room to get her drink. Riyo grips Ahsoka's hand a little tighter and eyes the Sith Holocron with unmitigated fear.

* * *

BEEP.

That's Ahsoka's comlink. Riyo opens the drawer and searches for the correct gauntlet, then takes the call. Anakin Skywalker's bust appears in the holocomlink.

"Anakin," Riyo says.

"Riyo," Anakin says. There are shadows under his eyes and sparse stubble along his upper lip and chin. "I sensed something in the Force from Ahsoka. Is she alright?"

"She's…." Suddenly feeling rather spiteful, Riyo moves the comlink closer to Ahsoka, so that it'll pick up her image. Anakin gasps and Riyo moves the comlink back to herself.

"I know you were desperate. I know there was no other way for you to get your information. But this is the last time you send her to that place."

"I didn't mean…."

"You sent her alone! She had to get help from Asajj Ventress."

"She what?"

"Ventress said it wasn't her fault, and you know what? She might be right. It should have been you with her; you two always protect each other. You could have done it. You could have found a way."

"I can't just leave Padmé," Anakin says. "Not now. She needs me too."

Padmé, of course. How could Riyo forget? All the fight goes out of her, and her shoulders sag.

"You're right. I'm sorry," Riyo whispers. "I shouldn't have yelled at you."

Anakin's eyes soften. "No, you're fine. I kind of deserve that. I put Ahsoka in this situation. I'm sorry too."

"Ahsoka's actually already finished with surgery. The doctor said she'd be alright."

"That's good. I mean, good that she'll be fine."

"I know," Riyo says. "Do you want to know about Darth Plagueis?"

"Ventress opened the Holocron?"

"Yes. She's not here right now, but she told me what she found." Riyo takes a breath to steel herself. "There is a Sith healing technique that revolves around pain and hatred. It's not sustainable, and according to Ventress, it's not as potent as the Jedi technique, because the Dark Side excels at destruction, not creation."

"Oh." Anakin looks down, disappointed.

"Anakin, please. I'm…there's more."

"What is it?"

"The only example Ventress could find of a Sith bringing a person back to life was Darth Sion. His agony was so great that he used it to fuel his focus of the Dark Side and used it to keep his dead body together so that he could possess it. He possessed his own corpse."

Anakin stares.

"Anakin?"

"Sorry, Riyo. I'm processing all this."

"I must ask: are you planning on pursuing this line of knowledge?"

"No! No." Anakin shudders. "No. That's not the kind of power I want."

"Whoever told you about Darth Plagueis must have lied to you."

"Yeah." Anakin pinches the bridge of his nose. "I realize that."

"What are you going to do? Sorry, you don't have to answer that, that's none of my business."

"No, I made it your business when I sent your girlfriend to Malachor. I'm going to warn the Jedi Council about the Sith Lord, and the Council can take it from there."

Riyo pauses as her mind immediately comes up with five different questions. She decides to go with the least probing one. "You're not going to do more?"

"Padmé and I are in hiding right now. From the Chancellor, from the Jedi Order, from everyone. It's actually kind of nice. It's like we're on vacation, but not really."

"That explains your face," Riyo says.

"You noticed?" Anakin rubs his pitiful facial hair. "Yeah, it'll help people from recognizing me. Nice, huh?"

"Y-yeah," Riyo lies. "How's Padmé?"

Anakin beams. "She's doing great! A little restless though. She's not used to not doing any work."

The door slides open and Asajj walks in carrying a bottle of liquor.

"Skywalker?"

"Ventress."

"If there's a story behind all this, I don't want to know." Asajj settles back in her chair. "You look like poodoo."

She's not wrong. Soon-to-be fathers often look like poodoo and Anakin isn't an exception, with the shadows under his eyes and his rumpled hair. Amazingly, though, he smiles.

"Say what you like, Ventress. Ahsoka's alive, Padmé's alive. What more can I want?"

Asajj rolls her eyes as she takes another swig. "Spare me your sentimentality."

"I'll call tomorrow, Riyo."

"Alright."

Anakin hangs up. Riyo lowers the gauntlet and turns to Asajj, who offers her the bottle.

"You look like you need it too."

Riyo takes the bottle. "This does not make us friends."

Asajj has the gall to laugh in her face. She kicks her boots up onto the table and picks up the remote for the holoscreen bolted to the corner of the hospital room. "Whatever you say, Senator."

She takes the screen off mute and changes the channel.

* * *

Anakin Skywalker's picture is all over the HNN. Underneath is the caption: Jedi General Missing.

"Oh Gods, he is in hiding," Riyo says. Anakin's picture is minimized to the corner, revealing the news anchor.

"Have any information about his whereabouts, please contact the Jedi Order at this comlink number. Joining me now is our panel of experts, thank you for being here tonight. I have to ask: Republic forces are spread thin across the galaxy, is it wise to divert manpower from the war effort in order to look for one Jedi?"

"One man? No. But we're talking about Anakin Skywalker, an incredibly capable Jedi Knight."

"Boring," Asajj says. She changes the channel.

CLICK.

"Her whereabouts are unaccounted for…."

CLICK.

"And a high of twenty-three degrees!"

CLICK.

Dyslogia Twang, a gossip reporter, shows up onscreen.

"Dark day for everyone everywhere," he says. "I mean, who doesn't have the hots for Anakin Skywalker? And now he's missing? Who will fill our lives with their brooding good looks now?"

"No one," one of his co-reporters says. The both of them lounge on couches with two other people.

"No one! There's a void now. All we're left with is his picture."

"Someone's got to know where he is," another person says. "I was reading the details of the investigation and apparently, there were no signs of foul play. No lightsaber marks, no blaster marks, it was like he vanished. So wherever he is, he must be okay."

"You think he went AWOL?"

"No. Well, we can't say anything for certain yet, but the authorities are also looking for Ahsoka Tano because they wanna question her about what she might know."

"Wait, why Ahsoka Tano?"

"Because she was his padawan. Like his…pseudo-daughter, little sister?"

"I don't think it works like that."

"Well I don't know, I'm not a Jedi. But she does know him well, and that's why they're looking for her."

"So where is she?"

"She's missing too."

"Oh my God! They can't find her? What is up with the Jedi Order? They can't keep track of a few Force-sensitives?"

"Like padawan, like master. Do we have a picture of Ahsoka Tano? Can we put it up on screen?"

"Yeah, she's really cute."

"Can you change it?" Riyo asks.

"What's wrong, Senator? Can't stand gossip?" Asajj asks, but changes the channel anyway. On the holoscreen, a gritty guitar jingle plays before the camera pans through an office where all the employees are gathered at a particular open cubicle with water bottles and thermoses in their hands.

"Tips have been pouring in all over the goddamn galaxy about Anakin Skywalker," a Tholothian woman says. "People have been claiming they've seen him, but they're all Bantha poodoo. They're just full of it. No one's seen him."

"Some people are saying that he's with Padmé Amidala," a Rodian woman says.

"The Senator?"

"Yeah. Apparently, she just took a leave of absence and no one knows where she is either."

"So what are you saying, that they eloped together?"

"Whoa whoa," the boss, a balding human man, waves his hands. "Tone it down, or we'll be sued again."

"You can't think there isn't anything going on," the Rodian says. Half of the gathered employees groan. "No, come on!"

A male Nautolan shrugs. "I can see it."

"Boo!" the boss says.

"No, I'm serious. Senator Amidala's kind of hot."

"Anakin's a Jedi! They don't do relationships."

"He's got eyes, right?"

"No, I'm not doing this," the boss says. "Moving on, what else you got?"

"Um, Senator Riyo Chuchi attended a Trickster's Ball wth Ahsoka Tano," the Tholothian says. Riyo sits frozen in her seat, but Asajj raises an eyebrow and glances over at her.

"Wait, that's that one Pantoran thing, right? Don't they eat people at that ball?"

"No, that's false," the Nautolan says. "I've been to a couple of those balls. It's fun, you guys should go sometime."

"But it's still depraved?"

"Oh yeah, it's self-indulgent as hell."

"And Senator Chuchi went to one of these things?"

"Yeah there was a poetry slam, and she did a poem there and," here, the Tholothian pauses. "It was…it was pretty raunchy."

"Oh Gods," Riyo mutters, turning deep indigo.

"How raunchy? Is there footage?" the boss asks.

"No, there's no cameras allowed in there, so no one could record anything," the Tholothian says, "but it was intense. Like if Ahsoka didn't give it up that night, girl…I will."

"Turn it off," Riyo says.

"But I want to see what happens next," Asajj says, enjoying Riyo's discomfort.

"Wait, wait, wait. Ahsoka Tano, isn't she that one girl who was dating Barriss Offee?" the Rodian asks.

"The bomber?" the Tholothian asks. "There's no proof of that."

"Were they together?" Asajj asks.

"No!" Riyo says. "I don't think so."

"You don't know?"

"I don't care!" Riyo says. "We haven't discussed exes and Ahsoka doesn't seem to care about mine, so I don't care about hers."

"You should if her exes include Offee. That girl's dangerous." Asajj changes the channel to the weather network and mutes it. She checks the time. "I'm going to sleep on my ship, where things make sense. Goodnight, Senator."

"Goodnight, Ventress."

* * *

Ahsoka dreams of repairing her old Jedi starfighter. There's a hole in the hull, and she's fashioned a piece that just fits in it. She uses the Force to hold the piece in place, then spot welds them together. When it can't move around anymore, she stops drawing on the Force to hold it and begins to weld the seam with overlapping spots. Ahsoka's hands are steady, and she's patient, and so each spot comes out identical to the last. Soon, she's got an even seam, but she doesn't notice, lost as she is in how therapeutic and hypnotic the repetition is. It's almost like meditation.

Ahsoka finishes off the weld and lifts her mask to better see her handiwork. It's beautiful, and she swipes a gloved hand over the seam to feel how smooth it is. No sooner than she does this, a holoscreen flickers on behind her, playing familiar sounds and images of the Jedi Temple.

But this time, it's different. Padmé no longer features in them. Instead, a familiar voice calls out, "Long live the Republic!" before the vision devolves into a furious storm of blaster fire.

"Riyo." Ahsoka jolts awake and finds herself in a hospital room. The ventilator mask is no longer on her face, and mid-morning sunlight streams into her room through the plastic blinds and spills onto her bed over her knees. Sitting in a chair at her side is Riyo, fast asleep. She looks extremely uncomfortable, and Ahsoka wonders when Riyo's gotten used to sleeping in chairs.

Ahsoka reaches out to her, but can't touch her while she's lying down. She hooks her fingers into the collar of her hospital scrubs and feels the cottony texture of the Bacta patch stuck over her chest. There's also a small plastic tube and she traces it down until she feels where it's stuck in through the patch. Ahsoka gingerly presses on her sternum, testing it. There's no pain, and there's no shifting, so Ahsoka sits up and immediately regrets it. Her head spins for a moment from the blood pressure drop, and when she recovers, she lays a hand over Riyo's.

"Huh?" Riyo blinks awake. "Ahsoka?"

"Hey."

"Ahsoka!" Riyo leaps out of her chair and envelops Ahsoka in a tight hug. Ahsoka smiles into Riyo's neck and pulls her into her lap in order to hug her better. She smells like pine and…something else. Ahsoka can't put a finger on it. Riyo trembles and Ahsoka pulls away to look at her.

"Are you crying?"

"No. Yes." Riyo wipes her eyes. "I'm just so relieved."

"I told you I'd come back," Ahsoka whispers and presses a quick kiss to Riyo's lips.

"Oh kark." Asajj rolls her eyes from her place in the doorway. Riyo's ears turn indigo and she turns away, but Ahsoka hugs her tighter and looks at Asajj.

"You keep sneaking around like that, and of course you're gonna walk in on things like this. Really, Asajj, people will start assuming things if you keep this up."

"I'm not wearing a bell, if that's what you're suggesting," Asajj says. "You have your trinket and you're alive and well. I believe we've reached the end of our accord?"

"Oh! Yeah." Ahsoka summons a data pad from the side table drawer and, since she refuses to let go of Riyo, holds up the data pad behind Riyo's back so she can see it over her shoulder. She accesses her bank account and pauses, then does a few sums in her head.

"Huh."

"Something wrong?" Asajj asks.

"No." There's more credits in her account than Ahsoka expected to get. A lot more. How did Anakin get his hands on this much money? Ahsoka transfers the correct amount of credits to Asajj's bank account and exits the app.

"Done."

Asajj checks her own data pad and her eyebrows go up in surprise. "Did you misplace a decimal? You might have given me too much."

"No, that's it."

"That's…adequate." Asajj tucks the data pad into her tabard and nods. "It was fun, Ahsoka. Comm me again if you have any other near-death experiences that you'd like to share."

And with that, Asajj turns on her heel and leaves.

"I can't say I'm sorry to see her go," Riyo says. Ahsoka smiles.

"She's not that bad. Did she open the holocron?"

"Yes." Riyo tells Ahsoka what she told Anakin and at the end of her explanation, she grimaces. "I used to be envious of you. Of Force-sensitives, I mean."

"Really?"

"Yes. All of you can do such wonderful things and here I am and I can't do any of that. But now that I know about the Dark Side, I think I'm over it."

"I think you're great," Ahsoka says. "Even without Force powers."

"I'm glad I meet your lofty standards," Riyo says.

There's a knock on the door, and it slides open to reveal Dr. Jago and a medical droid.

"Oh!" Dr. Jago looks up from their data pad and stops in their tracks. "Should I come back later?"

Riyo swears under her breath and slides off of Ahsoka's lap. "Good morning, Dr. Jago."

"I'd wish you good morning too, but it might be redundant at this point. Hello, Miss Tano, I'm Dr. Jago." Dr. Jago has the medical droid scan Ahsoka and skims the readout. "Do you feel any pain?"

"No, but I felt lightheaded when I sat up."

"That would be the low blood sugar; you haven't had anything to eat in more than twenty-four hours. And also maybe the blood loss. Your vitals are good, Miss Tano, and your sternum is healed." Dr. Jago scrolls down on the date pad. "Your body isn't showing signs of rejection so far, but if there's any swelling, or pain, come back and see me again."

"Does that mean I can go?" Ahsoka asks.

"Yes, the danger has passed. However, your skin still has to form over the wound. You'll have to wear Bacta patches over it until the skin fully closes up." Dr. Jago nudges the medical droid forward and it drops a bag full of several thin, single-use Bacta patches into Ahsoka's hands.

"Change it for a new one every twenty-four standard hours. As for the blood loss, drink lots of fluids. Oh, and try to get some rest. Your body may be worn out from performing all of its miracles."

"I will. Thanks, Doctor."

"It's no trouble." Dr. Jago wishes them the best and takes their leave, bringing the medical droid with them. Riyo puts a duffle bag at the foot of the bed and unzips it.

"Magnus brought you a change of clothes. I didn't think you'd like to wear your dress out. It's all dusty. And there's a tear in it. Do you need help?"

"I got it." Ahsoka unfolds her legs over the side of her bed and stands up. Riyo hands the clothes over and turns around to give Ahsoka some privacy.

"What happened on Malachor? If you don't mind me asking."

Ahsoka pulls a sweater over her head and pulls her lekku out of the collar. "There was a Sith Lord there. Darth Maul. He attacked us."

"So he was the one who hurt you?"

"Yeah. But that's okay. I might have hurled him into space."

"What?" Riyo starts to turn around, but catches herself. "O-okay."

"Yeah." Ahsoka finishes dressing herself. "Done. You can look. Can we go home now?"

Riyo's breath catches in her throat. 'Home.' That's what Ahsoka said. Not 'can we go back to your apartment?' She smiles so hard it hurts her face.

"Riyo?"

"Yeah." Riyo takes Ahsoka's hand. "Let's go."

* * *

Magnus and R7 pick them up from the hospital and drive them back to Riyo's apartment. In the backseat, Ahsoka lays her head on Riyo's shoulder and nurses a bottle of water. The duffle bag, now filled with her belongings, lies on the floor of the cabin at her feet.

"You alright?" Riyo whispers.

"I'm tired, that's all. I'll take a nap later. What did you do while I was gone?"

"I visited my mother. She's buried at the local temple."

"Oh."

"And I went on a Snow Walk with Magnus."

"What's a Snow Walk?"

Together, Riyo and Magnus explain Snow Walks to Ahsoka. Halfway through, however, traffic slows to a stop as hundreds of people flood the streets. They stand on parked speeders and cheer and shout and hug each other. A few people fire blasters into the air.

"Trickster's Tongue," Magnus swears. "What's going on?"

A Wookie pounds on the window, almost breaking it, and howls in Magnus's face before walking off, howling some more.

"'The war is over?'" Ahsoka repeats. "How?"

Magnus turns on the radio and tunes it to a talk show. It takes a couple minutes before they get the news that Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi has killed Separatist General Grievous. The war is over.

"Just like that?" Riyo asks.

"Wars are sudden like that," Magnus says. "They can start in one second, and end just as quickly. What do you say, Riyo? Shall we have a drink to celebrate?"

"Maybe later, Magnus. Ahsoka needs rest, and I don't want to leave her alone like this."

"Very well. Watch out for police, R7." Magnus flips a few switches and pulls a lever, converting the landspeeder to an airspeeder.

BEEP. It comes from the duffle bag.

"Oh that's mine." Ahsoka rummages through the bag and clips the hologram comlink from her gauntlet. When she presses the button, Anakin's hologram appears.

"Snips! It's good to see you. Hello, Riyo."

"Hello, Anakin." Riyo gives a little wave and Ahsoka smiles. She puts her head back onto Riyo's shoulder

"It's good to see you too, Skyguy," Ahsoka says. "What happened to your face?"

"I'm growing a beard. It's what guys do when they go into hiding."

Ahsoka gives a soft, sleepy smile. "You really did it. You left."

"Yeah. Gonna see if this civilian thing is as good for me as it is for you."

"It's pretty dang good."

"I can't thank you enough for getting that information for me," Anakin says. "Did you get the credits?"

"I did. It's a lot more credits than I thought there'd be."

"You need them more than I do."

"I don't know about that," Riyo says. "I hear babies are expensive."

"Well, yeah, but we're not hurting for money," Anakin says. "I gotta go, but I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Okay," Ahsoka mumbles. "Bye, Skyguy."

She ends the call and tosses the comlink back into the duffel bag. As soon as they get back to the apartment, Riyo sends Magnus off to celebrate, but R7 follows Ahsoka into the bedroom like a puppy, and settles himself in the corner. He turns off most of his functions so as to not be obstructive.

Riyo goes to the bedroom and closes the door behind her, washing everything in inky darkness. She's not concerned, however. She knows the layout of her bedroom enough to not bump into anything. She drops the duffel bag off to the side just inside the door. Ahsoka's already in bed, the blankets a cocoon around her, but she must be awake, because her pupils flash green when she looks at Riyo.

"Mind if I join you?" Riyo asks. Ahsoka lifts the covers in silent answer. Riyo shucks her pants and slides into bed. Ahsoka is warm and she smells like Bacta.

The both of them are asleep within minutes.

* * *

It's cold. It's cold. Ahsoka wakes up, shivering. Sunlight no longer filters under the curtains over the window and instead, a blizzard rages outside. Riyo's already at the thermostat, adjusting the temperature. When she comes back to bed, she pulls Ahsoka into her arms and rearranges the covers around her.

"I'll reprogram the thermostat in the morning so that the heater turns on at night," Riyo whispers.

"Mm."

Not all of the cold is coming from outside, however. There's something else and whatever it is, it's coming for them both. Ahsoka summons her lightsabers from the duffel bag and catches them behind Riyo's back. Riyo immediately freezes.

"What is it?" she asks.

"I don't know." Ahsoka closes her eyes and makes a sweep of the apartment using the Force. Through her lightsabers, everything is clearer and more vivid. A small squad of clone troops crowd the balcony beyond the bedroom window, and stand ready at the front door.

They are not here to catch up.

"There are troopers here," Ahsoka whispers. Riyo's fear spikes in the Force.

"Why?"

"I don't know." Ahsoka really doesn't. When she tries to read them with the Force, she only gets static white noise, similar to attempts to Force Read droids.

"What are we going to do?"

Ahsoka softly groans as she rolls over, her hand over her chest. "I can't fight them off like this. We can't run either, they'd catch us. R7? Wake up, it's an emergency."

R7's camera cycles through colors as he boots up. He clicks and gives a low whistle, then rolls to the side of the bed.

"Several clone troopers are about to trash this place. Slice their com signal."

BRAAP BRAAP.

"Good. Have they scanned this place yet?"

R7 answers in the negative. They just arrived.

"Slice the life-form scanner. Make it seem like this apartment is empty."

R7's camera cycles through colors again, then beeps.

Ahsoka closes her eyes and reaches out with the Force again. When the captain receives news that the apartment is empty, he orders a retreat, and the squad disappears into the night. They don't take the cold feeling with them, however, but since the physical threat is gone, Ahsoka releases a sigh.

"They're gone. Good job, buddy." Ahsoka swipes a hand over R7's dome before he rolls back to the corner. She tucks her lightsabers under the pillow and returns to Riyo. Ahsoka winds her arms around her waist and turns her focus within her to check her Force bonds.

Anakin's Force bond is inert, if also on edge. Ahsoka picks up the bond and is overcome with waves of panic.

ARE YOU OKAY? Anakin seems to think at her. Ahsoka sends him images of the clone troopers coming, but retreating back, leaving the apartment untouched. Anakin's always had a keen connection with the Force, so whatever she's picking up from It, he must be feeling it as well, only worse. Judging from the level of his paranoia, it must be very bad, and he's only mildly relieved at the fact that Ahsoka's alright.

Anakin sends flashes of images too. A heavily pregnant Padmé sits on the kitchen floor with him, a gallon of ice cream between them. Both of them are sobbing. But Anakin drops the bond soon after that, and Ahsoka continues her search.

The bonds Ahsoka shares with Obi-Wan and Plo are dusty and brittle from disuse, but they're still intact enough to give Ahsoka vague impressions of danger. Ahsoka's breath shudders in her chest when she feels Plo's Force bond crack and fall away. It pulls a part of her with it, and she shuts her mouth around a whimper.

The cold bleeds into Ahsoka's system from a ragged bond, one that she's torn up before, but has been mended from the other end. Barriss. She's out. She's angry. It's joined by a faint screaming in the back of Ahsoka's mind that she's never heard before. She realizes that it's the Force, and It smashes into her with the power of a super nova. Her body floods with phantom agony.

"Oh no," Ahsoka whispers. That's all she's able to say before she clenches her teeth and grabs handfuls of the back of Riyo's shirt.

"What is it?" Riyo asks. "What's wrong?"

But Ahsoka's already beyond words. Riyo tightens her hold.

Ahsoka's comlink beeps from an incoming message, but neither of them move to answer it.

All Jedi return to the temple. The War is over.

* * *

Note Bene: I totes understand if readers were confused about the Barriss Offee tag on this story, because she was introduced back in chapter 3 and hasn't been seen since. But she ain't no one-hitter quitter! Nah, son, your girl's gotta come back and break some skulls! Get hype!

I wondered what Anakin would look like with a beard, so I googled Hayden Christensen with a beard and it's scraggly. It's so bad. He tries, but he can't do it. I found this hilarious, of course, and now you readers are also stuck with this image.

As always, please leave feedback. Let me know what you liked and didn't like. If you got questions about this story, ask them. Concerns. Predictions. If the answer is a spoiler, I will tell you that it's a spoiler. Have a good week. Stay safe.

See you, space cowboy….


	12. The Road to Hell

Barriss was born out in space, on a ship. She was a quiet, precocious thing, with unblinking blue eyes that saw all and ears that heard just as much. She didn't always understand what she saw and heard, but she learned from them all the same. Like most Force-sensitive younglings, she was brought to the Jedi Temple before she could form too strong an attachment to her parents, but unlike most younglings, she was chosen by Master Luminara Unduli to be her padawan learner.

Luminara is an encouraging master, if also distant, and under her tutelage, Barriss's skill with the Force flourishes. As a young teenager, Barriss still sees a lot and hears even more, and to Luminara's concealed delight, she excels at healing.

Through the Force, Barriss is able to differentiate between all the different tissues beneath the skin, put a stopper on heavy bleeding, even slow the mind and body into unconsciousness in lieu of anesthesia. Medical bots, with their slow, stilted movements, can't serve as field medics during a battle, so when soldiers needs attention, the Jedi sends Barriss to treat them.

And on these battlefields, Barriss saves a few soldiers, but cannot save them all. Luminara tells her that she mustn't punish herself. All anyone can really do is their best, and if her best saves even just one person, then it is enough. Barriss takes comfort in this and in the Force, which is bright, and warm, and everywhere.

* * *

Despite being only a few years apart, and despite being raised in the same Jedi Temple, Barriss and Ahsoka have never met before the Second Battle of Geonosis and from the first second of their meeting, the two girls realize that they are very different. While Barriss is content to sit back and observe, Ahsoka plunges herself into her environment, changing it—even violently—to her liking. Rules become mere guidelines and everything impossible becomes possible. Ahsoka is defiant, fiery movement, and the Force sparks like fire in her hands.

She is wonderful.

When they come back to Coruscant from Geonosis, Ahsoka hooks her arm in Barriss's and leads the way down to one of the donation storage rooms. It's dim and the only sound is the hum of the fans as they circulate air. Ahsoka drops Barriss's arm and opens up one of the crates. When she doesn't find what she's looking for, she closes it back up and moves on to the next one.

"What are you doing?" Barriss whispers. Every single one of her nerves is on edge, heightening her senses to lookout for anyone who might catch them. "We're going to get in trouble."

Ahsoka glances at her. "Why?"

"These are donations. They belong to the Jedi Order."

At this, Ahsoka gives Barriss a searching look. "You've never raided the donations before?"

"This is a thing?"

"Yes, it's a thing! Come on." Ahsoka moves deeper into the room. Barriss hugs herself and follows, looking over her shoulder now and then.

"Yes, found it." Ahsoka pops open the crate and pulls out a bottle of Sunfruit Liqueur. She holds the bottle out to Barriss. "Well?"

"Well what? Ahsoka, you're fifteen."

"I know. Are you gonna hold it, or not? I gotta swipe a couple cups from the mess hall."

Barriss stares and Ahsoka shifts her weight from one foot to the other.

"Come on, I'll meet you out back in five, okay?"

Force forgive her. Barriss sighs and takes the bottle. "Okay."

Ahsoka flashes her a toothy smile, making Barriss's stomach flip. Barriss hides the bottle under her cloak and makes her way out of the temple, avoiding the eyes of everyone she walks past. She hopes she doesn't look too guilty.

Behind the Jedi Temple is an extensive machine shop. It's relatively new compared to the rest of the temple, and was built in response to the Clone Wars, so that all the Jedi serving in the war have a place to fabricate replacement parts for any vehicles they use. Behind that are warehouses used for storing raw materials. Racks stand in rows, holding different sized lengths and widths of all kinds of metal materials. One could usually find a more mechanically-minded Jedi in here, choosing the correct bar stock to make their part. The Lightsaber Architect, Huyang, can be found in here too, muttering about lightsaber parts and handles.

One warehouse is usually enough to house all the raw materials, so the second warehouse is kept empty. This second warehouse is the biggest open secret in the Jedi Temple, because it's where younglings and padawans go to goof off with their Force powers. Jedi knights and masters don't much care for what younglings and padawans do with their free time as long as no one gets hurt and no property gets damaged, so they don't ask about it.

Ahsoka leads Barriss out to this warehouse. She's never been invited out here before, and she looks around, drinking in the scene. About a dozen twelve-year-olds are in the middle of a very fast-paced game of dodge-ball. They summon and banish rubber balls at each other at incredible speeds using only their Force powers, and when one of them is hit, they roll out of the grid and another youngling jumps in in their place.

"Hey, not the face!"

"I got you, you're out!"

"Watch out, rogue ball!"

Along one wall of the warehouse is building scaffold. It isn't neat like regular scaffolds are, and instead seems to be a randomized layout of pseudo turrets, ramps, ladders, and bridges. Younglings scamper up and down the entire structure, playing Tag. They use the Force to leap between parts, and even to propel themselves up from the outside of the scaffold so that they don't have to waste time climbing up the ladders.

At the other end of the warehouse, younglings play Capture the Flag with ragged Republic and Separatist pennants. It's the only part of the warehouse where younglings use their lightsabers (set only to a low energy setting, so they don't hurt each other). It's a cacaphony of sound and motion. Barriss can barely think.

"This is chaos!" Barriss must shout over the noise. "Who keeps it safe?"

"We do!" Ahsoka shouts back. "Well, padawans do."

Barriss makes another sweep of the warehouse and sure enough, there are padawans. They're easily found with their extra height and their padawan braids, and most of them look to be about Ahsoka and Barriss's age. One of them catches a youngling who's slipped off the scaffolding with the Force and lets them down gently on the floor, then yells at the rest of the younglings to be more careful. Another one has a smaller youngling perched on their shoulders.

"Caleb!" Ahsoka yells at a human boy a little ways away, who stops in his tracks. "Is that a rocket dart?"

Barriss gasps. Rocket darts are basically fireworks that are marketed as toys, and are notorious for blowing youngling fingers clean off their hands. The boy hides his hands behind his back. "No."

Ahsoka rolls her eyes and summons it into her palm.

"This is a rocket dart." Ahsoka says.

"Aw, come on, Padawan Tano! It's only a little one."

"Wow, no. You're gonna get blown up and ruin this place for everyone. You want that?"

"…No."

"Then don't bring this stuff in here!" Ahsoka says. "Now get lost."

Caleb eyes her with distrust. "You're not gonna tell the masters?"

"You want me to tell them?"

"No!"

Ahsoka laughs. "Then go before I change my mind!"

Caleb whispers 'yes!' and runs off. Ahsoka crushes the rocket dart in her fist, rendering it useless, and leads the way up the stairs to a second story walkway that rings around the inside of the warehouse. Other padawans are up here too, watching the action below. They sit in pairs and groups on the walkway, letting their legs dangle off the ledge, and talk amongst themselves. Occasionally, one of them reaches out with the Force to prevent a disaster.

Ahsoka and Barriss sit down cross-legged on the walkway and Ahsoka opens the bottle.

"What's the point of this place?" Barriss asks.

"Well, you give younglings Force powers and lightsabers and they'll make toys out of them." Ahsoka pours out two shots into two ceramic cups and hands one to Barriss. "And they can't play around in the Temple, so they come here. And padawans come here because it's kind of fun watching them play." She lifts her cup. "To the Living Force."

"To the Living Force." Barriss raises her cup too.

"And still being a part of it." Ahsoka clicks their cups together and downs her shot. Barriss looks down into her cup for a moment, then lifts it up and downs it. It tastes like candy, all sugar and no bitterness at all, and Barriss lowers her cup with a small amount of wonder.

"You haven't had alcohol before, have you?" Ahsoka asks as she pours more shots. Barriss shakes her head and Ahsoka stares. "Wow, learned you a thing today."

They talk. They talk about their masters, about the Council, about who brought them to the Jedi Temple in the first place. They talk about the War, and they gossip about the other padawans in their age group. While they talk, they take more shots and soon, the liqueur steals upon the both of them, numbing their hands and faces. Halfway through their conversation, Barriss stops a ball from flying into a girl's face and at that, Ahsoka smiles at her.

"Thank you for showing me this," Barriss says. She gestures to the roiling chaos below and to the empty bottle between them. They didn't finish it themselves; other padawans came over and had a friendly shot or two with them before moving along. Barriss has learned that she's a lot more popular than she thought she was, despite being more interested in her studies than in other sentients. When she mentions this to Ahsoka, Ahsoka drags her hands down her face.

"What? Barriss, no. You're cool, you just don't know it. One of my best friends is a total brain and she's super cool too."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Here, I'll even call her." Ahsoka hops onto the railing of the walkway and wobbles a bit. Barriss stands up too, looking to help, but Ahsoka straightens up and reaches into a pocket for her comlink. She presses a couple buttons and waits for the person to pick up. The hologram bust of a pretty Pantoran girl appears over the comlink.

"Hey you," Ahsoka says.

"Hello yourself," the girl says. "Congratulations on your victory on Geonosis."

"Hah! Yeah, that was actually kinda fun. Whoops!" Ahsoka slips and almost falls off the railing. Barriss giggles and takes Ahsoka's hand to help steady her.

"Ahsoka, get down from there, you'll hurt yourself!"

"Aww, come on! Jedi aren't clumsy," Ahsoka says, but jumps down anyway.

"Sober Jedi aren't clumsy," the girl says. "Go home, Ahsoka, you're drunk. Who's with you?"

"Come here. Come here!" Ahsoka beckons to Barriss, then reaches out and pulls her close so that the hologram comlink will pick them both up.

"This is Senator Riyo Chuchi. Introduce yourself" Ahsoka says. Barriss giggles and gives Riyo a curtsy.

"Hello, Senator. I'm…uhm…padawan learner Barriss Offee at your service."

"Force, you're too polite," Ahsoka says.

"Hello, Master Jedi, and please, call me Riyo. A friend of Ahsoka's is a friend of mine."

"Thank you, Riyo," Barriss says. "Please feel free to call me 'Barriss' as well."

"How many shots are you giving her, Ahsoka?"

"We just had a thank-Force-we're-alive drink," Ahsoka says. "Just one."

"Lies."

"Okay, fine uh…more than one," Ahsoka says. "When are you coming back? I miss you."

Barriss gives Ahsoka a second glance at that. Jedi don't miss people. They don't miss anything. It reeks too strongly of attachment.

"Soon," Riyo says. "I'll com you as soon I'm in the system. You'll come too, won't you, Barriss? Ahsoka's never introduced me to another Jedi before."

She really shouldn't, but Ahsoka turns to her with a pleading smile.

"Of course," Barriss says.

* * *

It's miserable on Drongar. Republic and Separatist forces alike siege the planet in an attempt to gain control of its main resource, bota. But if it weren't for bota, no one would be on this forsaken hunk of rock. It's hot as hell, and humid too, so dehydration and hyperthermia are common problems among the troopers. And if troopers don't fall from that, they fall from inhaling the deadly spores in the air. Or drown in the monsoons. Or get struck by lightning from one of the many thunderstorms. Just death after death after death after death, each corpse the same and yet different, but they all blend together anyway in one mass grave in Barriss's mind.

Barriss finds no respite from death in the Force. She finds no peace in meditation. Food tastes like ash in her mouth. She can't sleep; all she sees when she closes her eyes are broken bodies. Luminara is away on business elsewhere in the Outer Rim and Barriss calls her comlink.

"Why am I here?" Barriss asks. Luminara's hologram blinks in surprise.

"On Drongar? The bota plant is a potent medical drug, Padawan, and Drongar is the only producer of the plant anywhere in the galaxy. The Republic needs it."

"I know that, Master, but." Barriss looks down at her hands, once so prized, now seemingly useless and stained. "Why am I here?"

Luminara's gaze softens. "It's only for a few more weeks, Barriss, and then you can come back to Coruscant."

Barriss sighs. "That's not…Master, I don't think I can hold out that long." She really can't keep this up; she's running on fumes.

"Come now, Barriss. We all must do our duty, even if it's hard."

Barriss considers disagreeing with Luminara, but the thought leaves as quickly as it forms. Luminara is her master, and it's not Barriss's place to question her.

"Yes, Master," Barriss says. When the comlink call ends, it leaves her chest hollow.

Barriss's Force sense has been going haywire lately. Usually, it only goes off when something bad is about to happen, giving Barriss a second to react, but now it's just this continuous buzz that comes from the back of her skull. It's unwavering and unsettling and it's been going on for days. No one else hears it, and no one else can offer an explanation for why this is happening to her.

Why is she here? Barriss pushes a trolley into a medical closet to resupply it and finds herself surrounded by shelves of Bacta products, surgery equipment, carefully packaged medicines and boxes of bota vials.

Barriss stares at the bota for a long, long time, then swipes a vial and slides it up her sleeve.

Later, while she's alone in her room, Barriss pulls the vial back out and looks at it. It doesn't look like much, because it's already been processed; only dull pink liquid remains. Barriss takes up a syringe and sticks it through the cap of the vial in order to draw the bota into the chamber. She holds the needle up to the light. This is what everyone's fighting over? Barriss is thoroughly unimpressed, but shrugs and sticks it into a vein anyway.

Her quiet room explodes into color and texture. She can feel each thread in the sheets on her bed when she pinches them between her fingertips. The metal handles of the desk drawers make sounds when she swipes against them, like they're hollow. Her body is a miracle of sinew and blood bourn from stardust and heat and pressure. And then she ascends. All of eternity rolls out before her in every direction and rising from it, sounding very much like the fantastic case of tinnitus that's been plaguing her lately, is the Force.

The Force is screaming. Has been screaming for days, probably longer than that, because Barriss can't pinpoint when she first noticed her Force sense going off. It grates against her ears and even though she covers them, It still resonates through her ribs and shoots into her head. There is no way anyone could ever block out the sound of this excruciating pain and anyone suffering this much only ever wants one thing: for the suffering to stop.

Barriss wakes up on the floor. She slept on her arm, and it's a little numb. She goes about her chores and duties in a daze, listening to the buzzing in her head with renewed interest mixed with a growing sense of horror. But the more she thinks about it, the more it makes sense. The Jedi are supposed to be the guardians of Peace and Justice. They strive to spread harmony throughout the Galaxy. But Barriss has walked through so many battlefields. Like how this war is tearing the Galaxy apart, it's also tearing at the Force. And instead of being the peacekeepers that they swore to be, the Jedi have become generals and commanders in the Grand Army of the Republic, and have spread war and destruction everywhere they go.

Barriss struggles against this line of thought. She tells herself that the Jedi are good, and righteous, and just. That they are honest, noble people. But if this were true, then why do the Jedi lead soldiers into battle? How much more hypocrisy has the Order practiced?

That's an unfair question to ask. The amount of hypocrisy that Barriss has uncovered is already damning enough; there's no reason to go looking for more. No, what Barriss should be asking is how self-aware the Order—more specifically the Council—is. Either the masters are lying about the purpose of the Jedi, or they are too incompetent to realize how corrupt the Order has become. Neither option is appealing, and maybe it doesn't matter how self-aware the Council is anyway. What is Barriss going to do about her discovery? Appeal to the Council's better nature? She's a padawan. A relatively young padawan even. The Masters won't listen to her. At best, she'll be laughed out of the chamber. At worst, she'll be condemned as a heretic. And that's if they're just incompetent. If they're lying, then the instant Barriss opens her mouth about her misgivings is the instant she'll be silenced.

Wait! Wait. If that's how lowly she thinks of the Council, then she should leave the Jedi Order. She should pack some supplies into a ship and go. But if she leaves now, then the war will still continue throughout the galaxy and the Force will keep screaming and no one will be saved. No one.

So she's got to do something, right? The Jedi used to stand for the Light, and it's not too late to return it to its former glory. Barriss can't be the only Jedi who hears all this torment. She can't be. And if she is, she'll make the others listen.

* * *

Would you trust a liar, or an honest person? It's a deceptively simple question with an easy enough answer: you trust the Liar. See, the honest person could lie at any time, and you wouldn't know it. You wouldn't even think to look for any falsehoods in anything they say. On the other hand, you can always trust the Liar to lie.

So when that one lie that the normally-truthful person says comes to light, as lies often do, then of course you're going to ask what else they have been lying about.

Barriss has spent most of her time off in the Jedi Archives on Coruscant, searching or something specific. Something that she cannot use the holocomputers to search for lest it become a mark on her search history. Anyone skimming the records will start to ask questions that Barriss is not prepared to answer. At least not yet.

Most of Barriss's research into the Dark Side can be distilled into two statements: Jedi good, Sith bad. Every time the Sith are mentioned, it's only in context of the eternal struggle between them and the Jedi. Barriss has a timeline of Jedi-Sith wars and skirmishes, and she could write an entire dissertation on Malachor, but she hasn't found anything about why the Sith do what they do, or how they do what they do. She suspects that the information she's looking for is contained within the Jedi Holocron Vault, but the only people allowed access are the members of the Jedi Council. If there's a good explanation for this, Barriss has never heard it. The Council has always shielded itself under the guise of mystery, and it isn't about to change now. Really, the entire practice just reeks of arrogance.

At any rate, Barriss isn't about to steal a holocron, and she's tired of wasting time researching the Sith. Like how the pioneers into medical science had to steal corpses in the middle of the night in order to further their research, Barriss will also have to do something drastic. She's going to have to throw herself into the deep end of the Dark Side.

Barriss stands in front of the Ancient Tree in the Jedi courtyard. It's as deeply rooted in the Force as it is rooted in the walls of the Temple, and if it's as old as the Jedi claim it is then it's existed before Time, and has witnessed all that has happened from then until now. Barriss is but a blip in its lifetime, and this tree will be here long after she is gone.

This tree isn't good or evil. It simply is, as the Force simply is, and it is Barriss's best chance at peeking into the Dark Side of the Force. Barriss sits cross-legged at the foot of the Tree and falls into meditation. The Tree seems to watch her for a moment, judging, before it throws her into the swirling Force, where everything is vivid and sharp chaos. Barriss feels as if she's been asleep all her life and has woken up and is only now experiencing reality. Emotions from all across the spectrum well up inside her and suddenly, Barriss understands that this is what it means to be alive. How can you guard life without living, and how can you live while stunting your emotions? It's not right. It's not fair. The Jedi have cheated her. The Jedi have cheated them all. Barriss's system flushes with power and her hands curl into fists. The pebbles on the ground around her rattle and take to the air around her. The leaves on the Tree rustle from an unfelt breeze.

It's not okay what the Jedi are doing, but Barriss can fix it. And the Order will adapt, or it will break.

* * *

Barriss thought that she would have to go to great lengths to hide her growing powers, but as it turns out, she kind of doesn't. Most Jedi Knights and Masters are too preoccupied with the war to pay attention to a padawan, and younglings don't know any better. Even Luminara doesn't notice anything odd about her padawan. Then again, she hasn't been given a lot of opportunities to pick up on Barriss's changing behavior. Jedi medics are in short supply, and so they're usually assigned to different campaigns. Barriss goes about her business during the day, and delves into her research at night.

The growing mob of anti-war protesters in front of the Jedi Temple is vindication to Barriss. They are loud and consistent, and the longer they demonstrate, the more attention they garner from the news outlets and the Republic. The Council doesn't seem to notice them, and Barriss cannot determine whether it does so out of willful ignorance or disinterest. Either way, it's another mistake that's added to a growing list.

One day, Barriss hides her lightsaber and joins the protesters. She chants with them as she walks around, skimming their surface thoughts for something useful. Another Jedi won't do, it has to be a Force non-sensitive.

After a couple minutes of looking, she finds Letta Turmond, a woman whose anger and frustration at the Jedi Order is only matched by her anger and frustration with her marriage to explosives engineer Jackar Bowmani. Jackar is overqualified and underpaid for his job working with the Jedi Order, and he has worked for the Order for years. Barriss strikes up a conversation with Letta, and later, over some drinks, Letta and Barriss hatch a plan.

Of the few married people who claim that they want their spouses to disappear, very few actually mean it. Letta may resent her husband for bringing in a pittance salary, especially when his skill could command an impressive pay from a private company, but she doesn't resent him enough to want him to literally blow up. Barriss perfects her new-and-improved Force mind trick on Letta, persuading her that she cares about ending the war more than she cares about her husband, and that if she wants this war to end, then sacrifices must be made. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of one. The needs of the entire galaxy outweighs the needs of the few. Letta feeds Jackar the nanodroids after all, and Barriss makes sure to avoid the Jedi hangar for the rest of the week.

The bomb explodes.

The effect is glorious to behold. Many Jedi return to the Temple, looking to regroup, and when Barriss walks the halls, she sees a lot of faces that she hasn't seen in a while.

And there she is, the only person in this whole entire Order worth saving, standing in a sunbeam and talking to Master Skywalker and Admiral Tarkin. Barriss catches Ahsoka's eye and gives a shy wave, and Ahsoka smiles and waves back.

Even though Barriss's plan has been solidified for weeks, she still hates—hates—what she's going to do to Ahsoka. And Force, but Ahsoka's going to absolutely detest Barriss for doing it to her. She's already committed, however. Ahsoka, like everyone else in the Jedi Order, is blinded to the Jedi's effect on the Force. Ahsoka's too close to the problem, and she won't listen. Nothing will stick if she's told that something's wrong; Ahsoka needs to be shown. And the lesson isn't coming out of a bota vial either. No, Ahsoka must learn for herself what Barriss has known for a while now. She'll even help her.

Barriss keeps a close eye on Ahsoka and Anakin's developing investigation of the bombing, and when they catch Letta, Barriss sneaks out of the temple to enact the second phase of her plan. She sneaks into the Republic prison where Letta's being held, in the air duct just inside the wall of Letta's cell, and waits for Ahsoka to arrive. Before Letta can give up her name, Barriss pulls upon her despair and rage and reaches out to crush Letta's windpipe with the Force.

Bashing Asajj Ventress in the face with a steel barrel is not part of Barriss's plan. It could have actually ruined the plan if Asajj had kept her guard up, or had kept a firm hold of the Dark Side and was able to fend off the attack. But she didn't, and so makes an easy target. Barriss disposes of Asajj with a quick swing of a pipe and takes Asajj's lightsabers and helmet with some disappointment. That was the best the infamous Sith Assassin could do? Oh how the mighty have fallen.

Fighting Ahsoka in the warehouse is similarly easy. Barriss marvels at how pitiful Ahsoka is. It's…well….

She's being unfair. Ahsoka's lost her shoto lightsaber, which she might have become dependent on, and is running on two days without sleep and without food. And while Barriss is fighting under similar conditions, she can tap into her dark emotions for that extra boost, while Ahsoka hamstrings herself by relying solely on the Light Side of the Force.

With every hit that Barriss lands, her hatred for herself grows and grows so by the time Ahsoka drops into the crates of explosive nanodroids below, Barriss practically loathes herself. She is a monster. But she's doing this for Ahsoka's own good, and for the good of the Force, so her sacrifice will be worth something in the end. Barriss deactivates her stolen lightsabers and jumps away into the shadows of the Coruscanti Undercity. She decides to keep these lightsabers. She looks good in red.

Getting caught by Anakin Skywalker is definitely not a part of Barriss's plan, but she's marched into the courtroom anyway. When she sees that the court is still in session, she's confused. The trial should be over by now. Ahsoka should be locked up in prison. But the trial is not over, and Ahsoka has not been locked up, and Barriss is here now.

The members of the Jedi Council watch her with rapt attention from their box, and the Press film her for their newscasts from their box, and even the Chancellor himself leans forward in his seat in interest. Barriss never has, and may never again, command such an audience, so she might as well put it to good use. She straightens her shoulders and denounces the corruption of the Jedi Order.

* * *

Barriss is watched by two Jedi Temple Guards at all times. They are massive, intimidating beings, but they seem content to stand and keep watch from just outside her cell door. Barriss is not afraid of them. Instead, she is lost in meditation. Her emotions are her strength and it is through strength that she will save the Force and the Galaxy. She's brought back to the present when the door to her cell slides open, revealing Luminara Unduli. Luminara steps into the cell and the door slides shut after her.

Master and Padawan regard each other for a long moment.

"Master Unduli," Barriss says with a bow of her head. They have called Barriss 'traitor,' and they will call her many other names that she won't care for, but she will damn anyone who calls her 'impolite.'

"It's not true," Luminara whispers. "Tell me it's not true."

"It's true."

"Your bomb killed half a dozen of your fellow Jedi." A slight tremor in Luminara's voice betrays her otherwise calm demeanor. "And has killed and wounded many others. You have murdered good people, Barriss. And then you tried to frame Ahsoka Tano for your crimes. Ahsoka, who everyone thought was your friend. Because of you, she has left the Jedi Order."

Ah. One person was saved.

"Why?" Luminara asks. Barriss finally lifts her head and looks her in the eyes.

"Because the Jedi spread war and not peace. Because the Jedi serve the Republic and not the Force. Because the Jedi have not been Jedi for a long time now and they must be stopped."

Realization dawns in Luminara's eyes, followed by fear. "You've fallen to the Dark Side."

"I would rather be an honest devil than a false shepherd, Master. And my fall doesn't invalidate what I said about the Order."

Raw disappointment, Luminara's disappointment, leaks into Barriss through their Force Bond, and Barriss staggers back as if physically hit. For the first time in almost a year, Barriss feels sick with regret. She wants to take back every single decision she has made for the past few months. She wants Luminara to actually hit her, because even that would be an improvement over this torrent of emotion bearing down on her.

"When did this happen?" Luminara asks.

"Drongar," Barriss says. "And Umbara."

Luminara's eyes light up in realization. "I should have never left you alone in that place. Why didn't you tell me?"

"I did, and you didn't listen to me. No one listens. I…." Barriss drags her hands down her face. "Everyone always says to listen to the Force too, but no one really does that either."

"And you do?" Luminara asks.

"Yes! I do. That's how I know that the Force is in agony. I can no longer be a part of the problem."

"So this is your solution? More destruction and death?"

"You don't understand. You probably don't care enough to try. You're only here out of some misplaced sense of duty. I'm a chore to you."

Luminara draws her shoulders back, as indomidable as the day Barriss met her, and says three words that send Barriss reeling.

"That's not true. You are my Padawan, Barriss, and I will not idly leave you to the Dark. How did this happen?"

"You really want to know?" Barriss asks, unsure.

"I do. I've more than enough time to hear your story."

"I can do better than tell you, Master. I can show you." Barriss reaches out.

BEEP. The lights in the cell flash red and the cell wooshes open, letting in one of the guards.

"The prisoner will back away," the guard says. His voice is distorted from his mask. Barriss shrinks towards the far wall of the cell.

"No! Stop," Luminara says. "I'm in no danger here."

"The prisoner means to tempt you, Master Unduli. You will leave the prisoner now."

"I'm quite capable of…."

"You will leave the prisoner now," the guard repeats, his voice hard and unforgiving. Luminara levels a severe glare at him, and Barriss, who has been on the receiving end of that look before, flinches from her place in the corner, but the guard is unmoved. Luminara turns and strides out of the cell, the guard on her heels. The door shuts with a final thud.

* * *

The next few days pass in a blur. Barriss is presented to the Jedi Council for her trial, but is unimpressed by their halfhearted attempt at justice. After the abhorrent way they treated Ahsoka Tano, everything the Council does is too little, too late. Barriss is found guilty of sedition and is stripped of her rank and privileges within the Jedi Order, but she finds that she doesn't really care. What was sterling is now tin, and what these people have to say to her holds little value.

She's transferred into Republic custody and is brought to a prison facility in the Mid-Rim to be processed. She changes her clothes for an orange jumpsuit and a white hood to cover her hair. Her rights—what little is left of them—are read to her before she's locked up in solitary confinement 'for her own safety.'

Apparently, there are many prisoners who have been arrested by Jedi, and would jump at the chance for some revenge of their own against a former Jedi, fallen or no. She's only there for one day, however, when she makes her move.

Using the Force, Barriss possesses a guard up in the Control Room. He resists for a second, but Barriss crushes his will in her fist. After that, Barriss sees what he sees. She locks the door, then draws the guard's blaster and shoots the other guards in the room. After that, she eyes the complicated control panel before him.

On the other side of the prison from solitary is the minimum security block where all the dirty politicians and business people go when they've been caught committing a crime. Next to them is the maximum security block, where all the violent criminals are locked up. These two groups are kept apart for many reasons, so it would be a shame if they suddenly had access to each other.

Barriss opens all the cell doors in both blocks, then opens a path between them. After that, she makes the guard pick his blaster back up so that he can hold it to his temple.

He pulls the trigger.

BWAAP. BWAAP. A lockdown alarm sounds throughout the prison. Fear spikes in the Force, and Barriss takes that as a sign that her distraction is working. She cloaks herself in the Force and demolishes her cell door, then just strolls out.

PEW PEW. Barriss ducks under two blaster bolts and zigzags down the hallway towards the couple guard troopers that shoot at her.

"Send backup now! Offee's out!" One of the troopers shouts. Barriss clenches her fists, crushing their blaster barrels. She flicks her hands and sends them headfirst into the walls, rendering them unconcsious.

Any other guards or prisoners that she comes across meet the same fate. She makes it to the the prison shipyard, and she steps aboard a yacht that probably belongs to the prison warden. She goes up to the cockpit and pulls open a control panel, but before she can hot-wire it, a dark-robed man appears in the doorway. The entire cockpit is filled with a freezing tide of malevolent aura. Barriss bumps into the dashboard in a knee-jerk reaction to get away from him.

"Well done," the man says. His hood is up, so she can't see his face. Barriss says nothing, rooted to the spot in the face of a true Sith Lord.

"Such fear. Such anger." The man lifts his chin and inhales, reveling. "Do you know me, child?"

Barriss makes herself speak. "No, but I feel that you are very powerful, and I know that such power can only come from the Dark Side."

"Indeed!" the man chuckles. "You are familiar with the Dark Side?"

"Not enough, I'm afraid. I'm self-taught."

"And already so proficient. Tell me, my dear, why do you do all this?"

BOOM.

The both of them ignore an explosion that rocks the compound behind them. Small pebbles click against the windshield. The prison is falling apart, but Barriss and the man continue to talk as if nothing is amiss.

"To bring peace to the galaxy," Barriss says.

"How?"

"By destroying the Jedi. I must finish what I started."

"Ah, such ambition. If you go alone, you will be no match for them."

"But who will help me fight the Jedi?" Barriss asks.

"Why, my dear girl, you need only but to ask."

Help. Barriss tilts her head in confusion. Help is good. No one has offered to help her before. "My lord, will you help me destroy the Jedi?"

The man smiles at her. It's not a nice smile.

* * *

Note Bene: Everything is burning and nothing is fine. Everything is permitted, because any action, no matter how horrific, can be justified. Welcome to Sith Philosophy 101.

In order to write this chapter, I had to drink some of Barriss's kool-aid, and I've come to the conclusion that being in her mind is terrifying and tragic (I've used that word twice now to describe Barriss. It's very fitting). I didn't enjoy the experience, and it was emotionally exhausting to write, but I hope you got something out of it.

I'm…I'm going to get myself a drink. Please leave feedback. I'll see you readers next week. Stay safe.


	13. Empire Day

Barriss stands alone in the communal refresher, at the long row of sinks. She spits the remaining bile into one of the sinks and rinses out her mouth. When she's cleaned all the sick out of her system, she takes a deep breath and looks at herself in the mirror. She no longer wears the heavy robes she wore as a Jedi. Her head covering is the same as before, with a slit at the back to let her hair flow out, but her dress has been replaced by a loose, dark tunic and tabard worn over knee-high boots and leggings. Sleeves reach all the way down to her knuckles, and Asajj's old lightsabers are clipped to a belt around her waist.

There's also a thin line of red ringing the outsides of her irises.

The refresher door opens and a trooper sticks his head in.

"The Chancellor is on the coms for you, sir."

"Thank you, Draa." Barriss straightens her clothes and leaves the refresher for the Jedi Temple proper. She almost trips on a body, but is able to step over it and continue on her way.

The fire that engulfed the temple last night has been put out, leaving dark scorch marks everywhere. Other marks come from blaster bolts, and other marks still come from lightsaber blades. Bodies, both Jedi and clone trooper alike, litter the floors throughout the entire temple. While the surviving clone troopers clear out of the ruined Jedi Temple, Barriss kneels before the hologram of the Chancellor.

"My Lord, the Jedi Temple has fallen." Barriss says.

The Chancellor closes his eyes, as if feeling the Force. "Good. You have done well, Kayip. Come back so that we may discuss your next task."

Barriss's eyebrows scrunch together. "My next task?"

"Yes! The Jedi are but one obstacle to peace. This war will last as long as the leaders of the Separatist Movement still draw breath."

"You're talking about killing civilians." Something in Barriss's gut clenches. She had hoped that her devastating breakout from the prison would mark the last time she'd have to resort to killing civilians.

"Come now, Kayip. Diplomacy was attempted many times without success. They cannot see reason past their stubborn pride. No, the Separatist Leaders must be dealt with."

Part of Barriss wonders how many others will have to be 'dealt with' before peace is finally achieved, but yet another part of her feels that if these people were without fault, then they wouldn't have to be dealt with in the first place.

"This will end the war?"

"Yes, dear girl. It will."

"Then I'll do it."

* * *

The comlink beeps from its place on the nightstand. Ahsoka raises her hand to summon it. As soon as it slaps into her palm, she presses a button to answer.

"Hello?"

"Sir!" Captain Rex's voice sounds through the speaker, and Ahsoka's heart skips a beat. Even though it's been almost two weeks since she left the Order, it feels like the last time she saw Rex was a lifetime ago. She didn't even get to say goodbye. The comlink picks up sounds of firing blasters in the background.

"Are you safe?" Rex's words come out breathless, like he's running.

"Rex!" Ahsoka eases up into a sitting position against the headboard, wide awake. Her lips and mouth are dry, so she summons a bottle of water from the nightstand too. "I'm fine. I'm safe. What about you?"

"Are you on Coruscant?"

"I'm not, I'm on the furthest point away from the Core Worlds. Rex, what's going on?"

"My brothers, all the one's with those infernal chips, it's like they've lost their kriffing minds! Don't come back to Coruscant!"

"I have to go back! I got a message on my coms last night."

"Don't come back, sir! That message is a trap, they'll kill you on sight."

Ahsoka freezes. "What?"

But the signal goes dead. Ahsoka looks down at the comlink and considers calling back, but decides not to. Wherever Rex is isn't going to be forgiving of any distractions.

The other side of the bed is empty and already cold. The holoscreen in the living room is on and Ahsoka can hear it from the bedroom. She gets to her feet and stands there for a moment, breathing.

Her chest feels fine, but she won't know how it really is until she tests it out. Ahsoka starts with a shallow breath, then exhales and attempts a deeper one. Deeper.

"Ah." Ahsoka winces as her sternum twinges. She gently presses against it and waits for the pain to fade, then goes to the refresher. She listens to the HNN panel discussion while she washes up.

"I don't believe this poodoo."

"Mr. Tular, you are on an Intergalactic broadcast!"

"And what happened is absolute poodoo! A Jedi rebellion? That's what they're telling us? No. No! The lust for power is not the Jedi way."

"The facts are that the Jedi attempted to assassinate the Chancellor. That sounds like a rebellion to me. The Chancellor did what he had to do to keep the Republic safe."

"But what about the younglings? Was their massacre necessary as well?"

Huh. That explains what she felt through the Force yesterday. Ahsoka numbly peels the Bacta patch away from her chest and inspects her wound in the mirror. It's already scarring over; a thin, five-inch long, light-orange line that leans a little more to the left side of Ahsoka's chest. She won't need another Bacta patch for it, and she leaves it to scab. She changes into an oversized shirt and a pair of flannel pajama bottoms.

"If Skywalker was captured by Separatist forces, we would have known about it by now. There is no ransom, and there is no announcement, so he must be missing for a different reason. We must consider the possibility of desertion."

"Perhaps he knew of the plot to overthrow the Supreme Chancellor?"

"Does that make him a hero now? He still abandoned his post."

"This is the only conclusion you can draw, Miss Pratar."

"And your conclusion is still just speculation until you have hard evidence."

Ahsoka goes into the bedroom and reaches for her dress only to find a gigantic charred tear running down the middle. Her hand goes through the tear and she clicks her tongue in disgust. Jedi mend their own clothes and while Ahsoka's pretty handy with a needle and thread, this damage is beyond her.

"Ah Force." Ahsoka folds the dress and lays it on the bed next to the rest of her clothes, which are similarly worn out; there's a seam on her left gauntlet that's just looking for an excuse to bust, and even her boots have been pinching lately. Ahsoka remembers Asajj mentioning how tall she's gotten, and she thinks that maybe she's outgrown her clothes. She strokes a hand down the fabric of the dress, then sighs and packs the clothes up into a sack, making sure to detach her comlink from the gauntlet and the lightsaber clips from her belt. She's going to miss this outfit, but she can't wear it forever.

Ahsoka goes into the kitchen, where Riyo's busy looking through the fridge for any viable ingredients.

"I could…make sandwiches," Riyo mutters to herself. "Maybe nerf dip sandwiches."

"Hey Riyo."

"Ahsoka." Riyo closes the fridge. "On the news…the Jedi…I'm so sorry."

"Uh. Hm." Ahsoka thinks that she might still be processing what's happened to the Jedi Order. When the war ended, she thought about maybe returning for a visit, but now there's nothing to return to. It's hard to believe that that many people would suddenly be gone overnight, leaving a gaping, ragged wound in the Force that bleeds even now. Riyo reaches up and swipes her thumbs under Ahsoka's eyes to wipe away tears.

"Oh 'Soka," Riyo whispers. She pulls her into a hug and Ahsoka presses her cheek against the side of Riyo's head. Ahsoka cries, shaking so hard that she might break apart. The plates and cutlery rattle inside their cabinets and drawers as she sobs. Riyo, unafraid, simply holds Ahsoka close until she's done, the warmth from her body keeping the cold at bay.

"I had so many visions about it," Ahsoka mumbles into Riyo's hair. "And I wasn't there to stop it. I did nothing."

"What could you have done alone against an army?" Riyo asks in a low, gentle voice. She rubs slow, comforting circles into Ashoka's back. "This is not your fault. Don't blame yourself, okay?"

Riyo's right. Ahsoka didn't lead clone troops into the temple. She didn't raise her lightsabers against Jedi. Ahsoka takes a few breaths to steady herself and pulls away, wiping her face on her palms.

"Better?" Riyo asks.

"A little," Ahsoka says. She still feels terrible, but it's somehow manageable now. "Thanks."

"It's no problem." Riyo gets up on tiptoe and kisses Ahsoka's cheek. When she pulls away, her hand lingers warm over the side of her jaw. Ahsoka leans into the touch.

On the counter, Riyo's white data pad beeps from an incoming message. They ignore it, but it beeps again as another message comes. And again. Riyo gives Ahsoka one last searching look before she turns away to check it. She scoffs.

"What is it?" Ahsoka asks.

"Some of my neighbors are asking if anyone else felt the earthquake tremor that just happened." Riyo sets the data pad back down on the counter and gives Ahsoka a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, no one was hurt."

"Oh."

"What do you need?" Riyo asks this with utmost care and concern. She steps back up to Ahsoka and looks up at her, her eyes soft and patient.

"Is there a clothing store anywhere around here? I can't keep wearing your sleep clothes."

"Aw, but you look good in my clothes," Riyo says. Ahsoka gives a weak smile. "New, or used?"

"Cheap."

"Used then. There's a thrift store a couple blocks away. I haven't been there in years. There's also a pawn shop if you're interested. I'll go with you."

The doorbell rings. Riyo goes to answer it, and Ahsoka follows her. It's Master Luminara Unduli, wearing a cloak and a cowl against the chill. Ahsoka's mind blanks for a moment, lost in a mess of competing thoughts and feelings. Riyo nudges her to get her attention.

"Master Unduli? You're alive. How?"

"Ahsoka." Luminara pulls down her cowl so that the two younger women can see her haunted face. She must have felt the shift in the Force too.

"I was fighting in the war on Kashyyk, but I was less effective than I should be. Yoda relieved me of my command and said that I couldn't serve until I found peace and that I would only find that peace when I have answers. I was already on my way here when the Order was attacked."

"Oh."

"You grew taller."

Ahsoka clamps down on a flippant response and instead says, "Master, this is my girlfriend, Senator Riyo Chuchi. Riyo, this is Jedi Master Luminara Unduli."

If Luminara is surprised at the introduction, she doesn't show it. "Hello, Senator."

Riyo immediately slides into her professional mode and gives Luminara a polite nod. "Hello, Master Jedi."

Luminara turns to Ahsoka with a worried crinkle between her eyebrows. "Is this a good time to talk?"

Ahsoka does not know what they could possibly have to say to each other, but is loathe to just outright refuse. Before she unwittingly drags the moment out too long, Riyo nudges her again.

"Sure," Ahsoka says. She and Riyo step aside to let Luminara in out of the snow.

"Please sit, Master Jedi." Riyo gestures to the armchair, then pulls Ahsoka into the kitchen. "How did she find this place?" she whispers.

"What do you mean?" Ahsoka whispers back.

"The address to this apartment isn't publicly listed under my name for security reasons. How did she…?"

"According to the rumors, Ahsoka has been staying with you, Senator," Luminara says from the living room. "So I ran your name through the classified Republic records and found this address. Don't worry, I wasn't followed."

Riyo hesitates. "Master Jedi, how did…?"

"Your thoughts are rather well-formed, Senator."

"Unbelievable. I swear to the Gods, you Force-sensitives have no sense of boundaries." Riyo sighs and gently pushes Ahsoka into the living room. "Distract her, please, before she gleans all the secrets from my head."

"You do have some mental shields," Ahsoka says. "They're just not up all the time."

"Go. Now." Riyo says. Ahsoka goes into the living room and sits on the couch across from Luminara.

"You have questions?" Ahsoka asks.

"Yes."

"Then why come to me? Why not go to Yoda, or to the Council?"

"A valid point, but I'm afraid they won't have the information I'm looking for. I must confess that I originally sought an audience with Anakin, but he is a hard man to find these days. You wouldn't happen to know where he is?"

"I'm sorry, but I don't."

Riyo walks into the living room with a tray holding a kettle and two mugs. She sets the tray on the coffee table. "I'm afraid I don't know where he is either, Master Jedi. Tea?"

"Thank you, Senator." Luminara accepts her mug with both hands and takes a drink. Riyo gives the other mug to Ahsoka, then leaves the room after one last touch of her hand on Ahsoka's shoulder. She shuts herself in her office.

Luminara watches the display and Ahsoka feels her lekku burn, but she's not about to apologize for that small sign of affection. She's not a part of the Order anymore, she's allowed. She'd actually prefer Riyo stay, but she probably left to keep Luminara from reading her mind more than she already has.

"My questions are very personal, Ahsoka. As such, I will not be offended if you choose not to answer them."

"That's alright, Master. I'll answer what I can."

"You're not Jedi anymore."

"Yeah, but I'm not Sith either. I'm not even Dark."

"How have you not fallen to the Dark Side?"

Luminara was right, that is personal, and borders on offensive. If it were anyone else, Ahsoka would tell them to go away, but it's not just anyone. She glances at Luminara's belt and finds two lightsabers there; the second one she recognizes as Barriss's. She looks down at the silka bead bracelet around her wrist.

"Attachment kept me from falling to the Dark Side," Ahsoka says. Luminara doesn't even blink.

"Please explain."

"When I left the Order, I was a mess. I used to think that I was only a Jedi. A good Jedi, but still only a Jedi. When I lost that, I didn't know who I was, and I was angry, I was…. If I were left alone, I don't know what would've happened to me. But I wasn't alone. People, Riyo, they refused to abandon me. They helped me. They look at me and they see someone worthwhile and I wanna be that person for them. That person isn't a Sith."

Force, that was a lot more than she wanted to say. Ahsoka takes a deep breath and busies herself by drinking some tea.

"Anakin fought so hard for you," Luminara says. "We thought him strange to go to such lengths for his padawan and we thought it was a sign of weakness for the Dark."

"We'd do a lot of extreme things for each other." Ahsoka thinks about the Sith holocron hidden in the drawer of Riyo's vanity. She's tempted to explain her relationship with Anakin, but he's in hiding, so the less she says about him, the better.

"But how do you deal with the negative emotions of attachment?" Luminara asks. "Do you not fear for the loss of your loved ones?"

"I do. It's complicated." Ahsoka absently touches her lightsaber. "But I've learned that I don't want to go where Riyo can't follow, and she can't come with me into the Dark, alive or not. And Anakin would never forgive me if I went Dark."

"I see." Luminara stares sadly down at her mug. "Your attachments are a tether to the Light."

"I have a support system," Ahsoka says. Luminara nods.

"I must apologize to you, Ahsoka, for what Barriss did to you. I might be partly to blame."

Ahsoka gapes. "No. No, that was not your fault, Master."

"A master's duty is to their padawan. I am responsible for her." Luminara leans back in her chair and sighs, bone tired. "I'd never trained a padawan before Barriss, and when I would reach out to Obi-Wan for advice, I would find out that Anakin would reach out to him for advice about you too, because he had never trained a padawan either.

"We found ourselves in very much the same boat and so it seemed the will of the Force that you and Barriss would find yourselves in one together as well. You became friends. You fought in the Clone Wars together, dropped out of the Order together, and when the both of you left, Anakin and I were left to pick up the pieces. We felt as if we had failed you."

Ahsoka had always thought of Luminara as Obi-Wan's contemporary, but not Anakin's, because of her age. It's difficult to see, because Luminara's face is youthfully smooth save for the smallest wrinkles at the corners of her eyes.

"She laughed when she was around you," Luminara continues. "I know that it may be too late, and you may even regret it at this point, but I am grateful for the kindness that you have shown Barriss in the past." Luminara stands up and sets her mug on the coffee table. "May the Force be with you, Ahsoka."

"And you, Master Unduli." Ahsoka stands up to see her out, and when Luminara is long gone, Ahsoka still stands barefoot in the mudroom, lost in thought. Riyo comes up to her and lightly touches her elbow.

"Are you alright?" she asks. Ahsoka nods. "Come on, then. We need to get you some clothes."

At the thrift shop, Ahsoka ends up picking up a pair of dark leather boots and gauntlets, brown work pants, and a sleeveless, dark blue shirt. She still feels kind of naked without armor, but when she clips her lightsabers to her belt, she thinks that maybe it isn't so bad.

On the way back to the apartment, Riyo's data pad beeps with an incoming message: The Supreme Chancellor requests your presence at a special session of Congress.

"We've both received summons," Riyo says.

"Yeah, but mine's a trap," Ahsoka says. "What's yours?"

"I don't know, but I'd be a fool to refuse." Riyo gives Ahsoka an apologetic look. "We have to go back to Coruscant."

"We have to go back to Coruscant." Ahsoka agrees.

Riyo calls Magnus and Titon and within the hour, they board the Rose Bride and fly out into space.

* * *

Ahsoka, disguised in her poncho, smoothes a hand over the wall of one of the grand hallways of the Jedi Temple, tracing a giant crack running through it that wasn't there when she left. It still smells like metal and smoke in here. The body of a human youngling lies on the floor with his eyes open. His hand is still clasped around his lightsaber and his padawan braid has only started to grow out. Ahsoka kneels down next to him and gently turns him over onto his back, revealing a long, burnt lightsaber slash across his torso. Ahsoka gasps.

"Ahsoka?"

Obi-Wan and Yoda appear from around the corner. They are whole and healthy, and Ahsoka rises to her feet, her mouth agape.

"Master Kenobi. Master Yoda. You're alive!" Ahsoka rushes to them, grinning despite herself.

"Of course! We could say the same thing about you." Obi-Wan's beard twitches as he smiles too. "It's good to see you, Ahsoka."

"Hmm. Better circumstances, I wish it were," Yoda says. "But yes, give us hope, you do, on this dark day."

"How did you get in here?" Obi-Wan asks.

"I snuck in through the back," Ahsoka says. "There're too many troopers guarding the front."

Yoda and Obi-Wan share a look, and Ahsoka continues.

"Masters, some of these Jedi were killed by lightsaber."

"A traitor, we have," Yoda says. "Search the temple for survivors, we must. Obi-Wan, recalibrate the signal, you will."

Ahsoka nods and leaves to search her part of the Temple. She tries not to look down at the corpses littering the floor as she goes. The ones with their eyes still open stare accusingly up at her and the echoes of their Force signatures, thick with despair, have seeped into the walls. They call out, asking for help that won't come. For relief from the Force too sick to absorb all the death at once. Tendrils reach out to snake around Ahsoka's ankles, to noose around her neck. She shivers and layers the Force around herself, creating a buffer that protects her from the worst.

"Hello?" she calls. She's well aware that calling out like this is incredibly stupid, but in this case, she's trying to be found. Her montrals pick up a faint noise and she turns her head in time to see movement out of the corner of her eye. "Hello? I'm here to help you!"

Whoever it is, they're fast, leading Ahsoka down stairwells, through classrooms, and even through a training holochamber. It isn't long until Ahsoka develops a stitch in her chest, and she clenches her teeth and presses a hand against her sternum as she runs. The two of them eventually duck into the archives, where the runner starts banishing data cards at her.

"Stop!" Ahsoka banishes most of the cards back at them and blocks the ones she can't. She didn't expect data cards could be used as effective weapons, but as it turns out, they can cut when they're banished with enough energy. When Ahsoka's had enough, she flips a heavy table onto its side and banishes that at the runner. They slice through the table with their lightsabers and fall into a stance.

Ahsoka stares. Those are temple guard lightsabers, but the person who wields them is definitely not a temple guard.

"Asajj?"

"Will you shut your idiot mouth?" the runner deactivates the lightsabers and opens their helmet, revealing Asajj. "You'll get us both caught."

Ahsoka leans back on her heel and looks Asajj up and down, scandalized. "Are you looting?"

"Yes." Asajj clips the temple guard lightsabers to her belt, unashamed.

Ahsoka crosses her arms. "This is a new depravity for you. You're branching out."

"We all have our hobbies. Look, if it helps, I'm the only looter in here, and I haven't found poodoo."

"That's because the donations are stored in the lower levels," Ahsoka says. As much as she doesn't want to admit it, the Jedi won't need those donations anymore. "Did you find any survivors?"

"No. Whoever did this was thorough. I'd…I should be jealous of their work." Sadness flickers in Asajj's eyes. "I found younglings in the Jedi Council Chamber."

Ahsoka gapes. "Younglings?"

"They can't have been more than five standard years. What a waste." Asajj's helmet closes and the voice modulator activates. "I was never here," she says, and she brushes past Ahsoka and disappears into the lower levels of the temple. Ahsoka stands in the archives for a little while longer, rooted to the spot. Eventually, she thickens the Force buffer around her and makes her way back.

Ahsoka meets Yoda outside of the server room. Obi-Wan is still in the middle of recording his message to the surviving Jedi, so they hold their conversation outside in the hall.

"Young Tano," Yoda says. "Foreseen this, you have and warn us, you did, despite the wrongs we have done you. And here you are still, despite no title."

"This was my home," Ahsoka says. "My leaving doesn't change that, and neither does a title."

"Weakened, the Jedi Order is. Irrelevant, titles have become." As he says this, Yoda looks incredibly old and weary, like he might crumble any second. "If we are to survive, then trust in the Force, and in our friends, we must. You are a good friend to the Jedi, Young Tano."

"Master Yoda?" Ahsoka asks.

"By the right of the Grand Master, and by the will of the Force." Yoda reaches into his robe and takes out a Jedi Holocron. He holds it out to Ahsoka.

"Master Yoda!" This is highly inappropriate for at least three reasons.

"Complete the set, you should," Yoda says, and Ahsoka's mouth closes with a click. "If balance is what you need, then it is balance you should seek."

"How did…." Ahsoka tries to think of something to say, but Yoda watches her expectantly, so she accepts the holocron with trembling hands. "Thank you."

Yoda hums with approval.

Obi-Wan walks out of the server room, very pale, with his outer robe pulled around him. "It was Barriss. Barriss Offee attacked the temple with a corps of clone troops."

"What?" Ahsoka asks. Yoda closes his eyes and bows his head. "No! She couldn't, she was in prison."

"She did it, Ahsoka." Obi-Wan's blue eyes soften. "I'm sorry."

"Destroy the Sith, we must," Yoda says. "Obi-Wan, find Skywalker, you will. His help more than ever, we need."

"He is the Chosen One," Obi-Wan says, "but how am I to find him?"

Both Yoda and Obi-Wan look at Ahsoka.

"I don't know where he is," Ahsoka says. "I told him not to tell me just in case this exact situation happened."

"Search your feelings, Obi-Wan, and you will find him," Yoda says. He turns to Ahsoka. "Will you help us, Young Tano?"

"Yes. Do you need me to go with you to face the Sith Lord?"

"No." Yoda's eyes fill with pity. "Face Young Offee, you will."

Ahsoka cringes, her body heavy with dread. "Please don't make me do that, Master."

"There is no one else," Yoda says. "It must be you."

"You can say 'no,' Ahsoka," Obi-Wan says. "I can fight Barriss while you find Anakin."

"No. Master Yoda's right," Ahsoka says. "Someone has to stop her, and I'm it. I can find her, but you can't."

"How will you find her?" Obi-Wan asks.

"We have a Force Bond," Ahsoka says, and Obi-Wan's eyes widen in surprise. "I tried breaking it after I left the Order, but Barriss just repaired it."

"The existence of a Force Bond between the two of you, let alone one that tough is…that's er, that's…."

"Yeah, I know," Ahsoka says. She can't look anywhere else but down at her boots. People can't blow weapons factories up and fight off brainwashed troops together and not come out of it without some kind of connection, Force-based or otherwise.

"May the Force be with you," Obi-Wan says. The three of them go their separate ways.

Ahsoka calls R7 on her comlink. "Where are you?"

R7 whistles. He's in the Jedi Temple hangar, and he's found a working starfighter.

"What? No, get out of there. We're not stealing a starfighter."

R7 growls and beeps, sounding almost mad. He's put so much effort into prepping this starfighter and she's not going to fly it?

"Okay fine!" Ahsoka takes an elevator going up to the hangar and meets R7. The starfighter is in pretty good shape; the hardware checks out and the software systems are online. But before they can fly it out, Ahsoka must get rid of the Jedi logo, so she burns a few panels with a few careful scrapes of her lightsaber.

* * *

Riyo and Magnus meet Padmé and Bail Organa outside the Senate building.

"Hello Padmé, Bail," Riyo says.

"Riyo." Bail's eyebrows go up in surprise. "I didn't expect you back for another five days."

"The Chancellor is adamant that the entire Senate attends this session." Riyo turns to Padmé. "Padmé, I thought…." But her quick eyes catch a small, freshly-healed cut in the skin just before the ear, where the jawbone hinges to the skull. Magnus has a similar cut. So does Titon. It's for a special comlink that's embedded into the skin, one that's usually paired with a small microphone stuck to the inside of the collar of a shirt or jacket. Magnus uses these comlinks to coordinate his security team.

"Oh."

Padmé's eyes flicker, as if she's listening to something only she can hear, then her gaze softens. "Still figuring out great secrets, I see."

"Not quickly enough." Riyo feels like the biggest eopie. Padmé leans forward to whisper in her ear.

"My lady is still impressed."

When 'Padmé' straightens up, she leaves Riyo an indigo mess.

"Um." Riyo looks down at her feet. Gods damn it, she thought she was over this. "Thank. You."

"Oh dear." Padmé's double puts a hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle.

The three of them make their way to the Senate chamber together, which is already full of Senators. Usually, about a third of the pods are empty, and holograms of the telecommuting senators are projected in them. Today, there are hardly any empty pods. Riyo, Padmé's double, and Bail must share one. Camera droids, owned by the news outlets, hover within the chamber, recording everything and broadcasting it live over the Holonet.

"Has been foiled," the Chancellor is in the middle of saying. He wears a black robe with a deep hood that hides his face. The more he talks, the more horrified Riyo feels. By the looks on the people in the pod with her, she isn't alone, but they're the minority. Most of the Senate hangs on to every word that drops from the Chancellor's lips, and when the Chancellor—wait no, he's the Emperor now—finishes his speech, the Senate bursts into applause smattered with boos.

Riyo leans back in her seat, somewhat numb. What-uh what do…what do they do now? Ahsoka…is—Anakin told the Jedi who the Sith Lord was and they went and attacked the Emperor? Then that would mean…black bags. Wait. Uh. There is no such thing as a bloodless regime change. Stop! That's not the point. Ahsoka's in danger. Riyo herself is also in danger, but she's not going to be shot on sight (she hopes). She needs to…she needs to….

"Breathe, Riyo," Bail says.

Riyo takes a deep breath. "Thank you. I…what do we do now?"

Bail looks around the Senate chamber, searching for other pockets of dissent like theirs. "We resist."

* * *

Admiral Tarkin, along with a couple other high-ranking military and naval officers, and a few politicians, sit at a long, black table in a dark meeting room. There are ten of them, five along each side. The Emperor, or Darth Sidious, as he must now be called, makes the eleventh, and he sits at the head of the table.

"The Senators cannot represent the interests of their systems and the interests of the Empire at the same time," Sidious says. "There must be another body, one that will protect the Empire, fulfill its goals, and invoke my will throughout the galaxy. Sector Governors, if you will, with the title of 'Moff.' All of you here, should you choose to accept, will be that body."

"It would be an honor, my lord," Tarkin says. The other men give vague noises of agreement and Sidious smiles under his hood.

"Very good! Very good. You will answer only to me and to one other. She's postponed a mission to Mustafar to meet you all. Darth Kayip, please enter."

The door off to the side opens, and Barriss walks in.

"Yes, my lord?"

"These men have all agreed to be Imperial Moffs. They are at our disposal. My friends, you will defer to Darth Kayip as you would to me. Her orders will be followed as if issued from my mouth."

A murmur of discontent ripples through the room. With the exception of Barriss, everyone here is a human man. The one sitting furthest away, General Zoldayo, raises his voice.

"My lord, I must protest!"

It releases a flood of complaints from some of the other men, and their words fill the room. Something flickers across Barriss's eyes, but she doesn't move a muscle.

Sidious claps his hands for silence. "Why so hesitant, General Zoldayo? Speak your mind."

"She is only a girl. And a Mirilian to boot. I very much doubt anyone on this council will take orders from the snot-nosed bitch you picked from the gutter!"

In the blink of an eye, Barriss is on the table, running down to the other end. She kneels on the tabletop before General Zoldayo and activates one of her lightsabers.

THUD.

Zoldayo's severed head bounces over the tabletop and rolls to a stop in front of a politician, who shrieks and falls out of his seat. The other politicians scream and retreat from the table, and the other military commanders tense up, but Tarkin just raises an eyebrow. Sidious gives a cruel chuckle, like he's watching an unfolding opera.

Zoldayo's body spasms for a couple seconds longer before it goes still, and Barriss stands up and regards the rest of the room. She puts away her lightsaber.

"If I may, my lord?" Barriss asks.

"Go right ahead," Sidious says. Barriss turns to the surviving Moffs and gives them a warm smile.

"I have lead before, and I am used to taking suggestions from more experienced subordinates, so I hope that you will bring any questions and concerns to me so that I may address them. We must work together to make the Galaxy a better place."

The smile drops from Barriss's face. "But if any of you brings up my species, or my gender, as negatives, I will kill you." She summons Zoldayo's head into her hand and holds it aloft by its hair. "Just like I killed this man. Now if any of you spineless sacks of poodoo have anything else to say, NOW IS THE TIME!"

There's a moment of silence where almost everyone stares up in terror at Barriss. The pungent smell of urine wafts through the room.

THUD.

Barriss drops Zoldayo's head onto the table and reaches into her tabard for a handkerchief to wipe her hands.

"That's what I thought."

* * *

Riyo makes her way down to the lower levels of the Senate Office Building, near the bunker. None of the Senators have offices down here, because the offices here either have terrible views, or don't have windows to begin with, and since there aren't any senators, there aren't any staff here either.

So when Ahsoka asked for a safe place to meet, Riyo suggested one of the rooms down here, confident that it would be deserted enough to be secure. She didn't expect it to be so eerie though.

The deeper Riyo goes, the more unsettled she feels. She's not particularly good at sneaking around; that was proved when she and Ahsoka saved Papanoida's daughter from the Trade Federation ship a couple years ago, but she's going to have to get used to doing all this espionage stuff if she's going to be a part of the Rebellion (with a capital 'r' even, that's how quickly Bail and Mon Mothma are moving).

Riyo opens a custodial closet and steps inside. The door shuts behind her, washing everything in complete darkness. She can't move for fear of bumping into something, but she can still hear something shift in front of her.

"Ahsoka?" she whispers. She relaxes at the flash of green pupils and she reaches out to her. "You're alright!"

"I'm alright." Ahsoka pulls Riyo into a tight hug and murmurs into her ear. Ahsoka is warm and real against her and for one moment, the entire galaxy narrows down to just them. Ahsoka flicks on the lights so that they can see each other.

"I have something to tell you," the both of them say at the same time.

"You go first," Riyo says. Ahsoka tells her about her mission to fight Barriss.

"That's cruel," Riyo says. "How can they ask you to do that?"

"If that's how I can help, then I'll do it. Maybe…I don't know, maybe I can reach her somehow?"

"That's an idea. What about Luminara Unduli?" Riyo asks. "She can't help you?"

"She's probably in hiding too. All the survivors are in hiding. It'll be hard to reach her and this has to be done as soon as possible."

"Ahsoka, be careful," Riyo says.

"I will. What did you want to tell me?"

Riyo tells her about the special session of the Senate, and of the Rebellion.

"None of that will last long if your mental shields aren't up all the time," Ahsoka says.

"But I'm terrible at that. Weren't you supposed to teach me at some point?"

"Oops," Ahsoka says, cringing. "I can still give you a crash course."

"Oh joy," Riyo deadpans.

"No, I'm serious. Your shields are decent, you just gotta get used to keeping them up all the time." Ahsoka whispers a quick rundown of technique into Riyo's ear and unclips the silka bead bracelet from her wrist. She holds it up between them.

"Is that your padawan braid?" Riyo asks.

"Good, you recognize it. The problem with your shields is that you forget about them and then they fall. So this will remind you to keep them up." Ahsoka takes Riyo's hand and clips the braid around her wrist. "Padawan braids are for Force-users, and you need to protect your mind from them."

"Got it," Riyo says. Two seconds later, they blush almost simultaneously. Riyo pushes past her embarrassment first.

"Is this what it takes to give me jewelry, Ahsoka? Mortal peril?"

"Oh Force." Ahsoka blushes for a different reason. She just gave Riyo her padawan braid. Her braid! Granted, she forgot since she's been wearing it on her wrist lately, but still.

"I'm teasing!" Riyo tries to catch Ahsoka's eye. "It's sweet. Thank you."

But Ahsoka's blush only deepens and a low whine escapes her throat.

"What is it?" Riyo asks.

"Uh, you remember how Togruta have a thing about the head and the things worn…on…the head?"

"Yes, why?"

Ahsoka gives a pained smile. "I just gave you my padawan braid and that thing's been on my head for years."

Riyo shrieks and hurries to undo the clasp of the bracelet. "Oh Gods! Take it back!"

"But you need it more than I do!"

"Take it back! I can't accept this, you didn't know what you were doing when you gave it to me."

"You accepted it and you didn't know what it meant either."

"Well, I know what it means now." Riyo struggles to unclasp the bracelet, but can't do it with one hand. She's about to resort to using her teeth when Ahsoka covers her wrist and hand with both of hers.

"Don't."

"Ahsoka?" Riyo's eyes dart back and forth from their hands to Ahsoka's very serious face.

"Don't take it off," Ahsoka says. Even though she's stumbled into giving it, the thought of Riyo returning the bracelet is, by far, the more painful outcome. She shifts her weight from one foot to another. "I want—I want you to have it."

Riyo's eyes widen in astonishment and Ahsoka hurries to explain.

"It's not a knife, okay? I mean, I'm not ready to make a knife and you're probably not ready to get knifed either, so I'm not…you know."

"But it's very similar, yes?" Riyo asks.

Ahsoka's lekku stripes burn dark, dark blue. "Yeah. You wearing that bracelet…people would see it. They wouldn't know what it means, but still."

"Oh." Riyo's voice is carefully controlled, and she bites on her lower lip as if to keep from breaking into a smile. "I see."

She reaches up to wrap her arms around the back of Ahsoka's neck and pulls her in for a kiss.

* * *

Mustafar is a bleak planet. The sky is blocked out from both ash from the millions of volcanoes, and from the pollution belched out of the processing plants and mines that drive Mustafar's economy. This thick blanket of clouds and smoke traps in all the heat the planet produces, and the temperature of the environment skyrockets as a result. As soon as Ahsoka lifts the canopy of her Jedi starfighter, she's hit with a wall of dry heat and almost swallows a mouthful of ash. It's like stepping into an enormous, hellish oven.

"Ack! Ptth!" Ahsoka leans over the side of the ship and spits. "Gross. Monitor your air filters, buddy. They might need to be replaced when we leave."

R7 chatters.

"No." Ahsoka takes off her poncho and drops it into the cockpit. "Stay with the ship, R7."

R7 beeps and huddles deeper in the astromech socket. Ahsoka gets halfway down the wide catwalk leading from the landing pad to the main building before she spots a familiar figure walking towards her.

Barriss looks different dressed in all black, almost like a different person altogether. Thankfully, her eyes are still blue, tinged warm from the dim light of the lava around them.

Ahsoka's reminded of her vision on Ilum, and like then, dismay pools in her stomach at the sight of her former friend.

"Oh, Barriss," she whispers. She feels the difference in the other woman more than she sees it; the closer Barriss comes, the colder the air feels until Ahsoka expects to see her breath condense in the air. She's hard-pressed to remember the natural searing heat of the planet at all.

Some part of her hoped that what she's heard about Barriss was wrong. That she didn't lead an attack on the Jedi temple. That she didn't kill those younglings. But Ahsoka can't deny the proof that seeps into her bones.

"Ahsoka," Barriss calls out. She actually smiles, warm and genuine. "You came."

"I'm here," Ahsoka says. What she's here to do, she doesn't want to admit to yet. "Why me? Why did you frame me for the bombing?"

"I saved you," Barriss says as lightly as if they're talking about the most recent development on a holonet show. "You were trapped in the Jedi Order. They ensnared you with their hypocrisy and lies, but I showed you how they really are."

Oh, Ahsoka knows what this is. Asajj mentioned it before. Still, she bites back on a flood of indignation and takes a deep breath to center herself.

"You would condemn me to death to set me free?"

"You think I would abandon you to the mercies of the Republic? You know that no prison can hold either of us; you taught me that. If you were convicted, I would have broken you out."

"Broken me out? Barriss, I would still be a convict, what kind of life is that? And you don't-you don't get to throw me away like that and then pretend that you care."

"I have always cared about you!"

"If that's how you treat the people you care about, then I don't want it. And what you've done since? You killed Jedi! Knights, masters, younglings! You led troopers into the Temple, you slaughtered our family! Did you do that out of the kindness of your heart too?"

"Knits breed lice," Barriss says. "The Jedi Order was hurting the Force by fighting in this war, and I had to stop it. All of it."

"The Force was out of balance long before the Clone Wars started, and the Jedi were not responsible for that."

"You cannot deny that there is something wrong with the Order."

"Of course the system is flawed, it's run by flawed sentients! We can't be perfect, but we can strive to be better. We—oh Force—you could have just left! You should've left. Or at least you could've said something. To Master Unduli, to me, to anyone."

"No one would have listened to me."

"You don't know that because you didn't even try!" Ahsoka shouts. She wonders how Riyo and Padmé get through discussions like this without raising their voices. This is infuriating. "I would have listened. I would have listened and you didn't talk to me. I'm not a person to you, I'm a pawn."

"False," Barriss says. Ahsoka drags her hands down her face.

"On Geonosis…everything we've done together, was it a lie?"

Barriss steps back. "No!" She says, "Ahsoka, I've always thought of you as my dearest friend."

Rage wells up like bile in Ahsoka's throat, but she swallows it down so she can hold out her hand. She can do at least this much.

"It's not too late, Barriss. I can still help you."

Barriss eyes Ahsoka's hand. "The screaming would stop."

"Yes," Ahsoka cautiously says. She may not know what Barriss is talking about, but that doesn't mean she can't help.

"I would have to go back to prison."

"You're already a prisoner of the Dark Side."

"The Dark Side grants me unimaginable power and I cannot be a prisoner while I have it. I can show you!"

Ahsoka drops her hand. "Show me? Will you have to blow someone else up to teach me the Dark Side too?"

"You joke because you don't understand. Ahsoka, come with me. Think of what we could do together!"

Ahsoka's mouth tightens into a thin line. "That's not the kind of power I want, Barriss. Please stop this."

"Why? Because you'll kill me if I don't?" But when Ahsoka stays silent, Barriss's face twists into a snarl and the temperature around her plummets to freezing. "I did it all for the Force, and I did it for you! Why can't you just let me do this for you, Ahsoka?"

"Because it's wrong. It's wrong and even though you won't admit it, you know it."

"My conscience is clear!"

"Then why are you crying?"

It's true. Barriss started crying soon after Ahsoka offered her hand, and the tear tracks running down her face glisten in the dim light. Barriss takes one of her lightsabers in hand and ignites it.

"I will not show you any mercy," Barriss whispers. Ahsoka summons her lightsabers into her hands and activates them too. The white blades are bright against the angry red haze of the planet. They salute to each other, then settle into their stances.

Ahsoka leaps forward and slashes down on Barriss's blade. Thus, their fight begins.

Barriss, like Luminara before her, and Obi-Wan, has roots in Soresu, the most defensive style of lightsaber combat. Fighting against Soresu is like trying to bash through an impenetrable wall, only when you've tired yourself out, the wall punches back.

Barriss catches Ahsoka's lightsaber in a block and pushes forward, jabbing the tip of her blade at Ahsoka's head. Ahsoka dodges and steps away. She reminds herself that Barriss has always had solid technique. All that drilling that Luminara put into her schedule had to be good for something. On the other hand, Ahsoka more often threw herself into sparring matches with fellow padawan. Or with knights. With anyone really. She'd learn new techniques that way and practice them afterwards.

Ahsoka steps forward and tries again. She once entertained the idea of switching styles to Soresu (probably because she has never come close to beating Obi-Wan in a match), but found that she has no patience to play continuous defense. She's got to do something in a fight, she's got to attack, and so has continued to use the reverse Shien style. It's fast, and it's aggressive, as befits her and Anakin.

When Barriss catches Ahsoka's main blade in a lock and tries to jab again, Ahsoka moves her head to the side and steps in, letting their blades slide against each other, then swipes at Barriss's middle with her shoto lightsaber. Barriss jumps back, but not before Ahsoka cuts part of her tabard across her stomach.

Of all the styles, Shien has the highest number of counterattack maneuvers. It's kind of balanced that way.

Barriss looks down at her ruined clothes, then back up at Ahsoka. She scowls, and lowers into her stance again. When Ahsoka next attacks, she finds her lightsaber blades bouncing off of Barriss's blocks, flinging her arms out and leaving her wide open. She steps back again and again, giving up precious ground. If she doesn't do something soon, she'll be backed into a corner. Barriss is blocking with the power of someone a hundred pounds heavier than she is, and Ahsoka figures out that she's actually filling up her body with the Force, similar to what Maul did on Malachor. Barriss is faster and stronger for it, but she has nowhere near the same level of finesse and control that Maul had.

She's not the only one with a new trick. In the middle of a blade lock, Ahsoka lifts her pinky off her lightsaber handle and pulls on Barriss's knee, destroying her balance. Barriss falls out of the blade lock and backflips away. Right before she lands, Ahsoka tugs on the soles of Barriss's boots, making her slip and fall on her butt. Barriss gives the most undignified squawk.

"Having a little trouble there?" Ahsoka asks with a humorless smile.

Barriss shrieks and sends a Force push down the catwalk, but Ahsoka senses it coming and leaps over the push and down to Barriss. She slashes down with both lightsabers, but Barriss blocks her.

Ahsoka's suddenly very aware that she's standing right next to Barriss's feet, but before she can move away, Barriss deflects their lightsabers off to the side and arches her body up. She lifts her foot and kicks Ahsoka in the stomach. Ahsoka staggers back, winded. She gasps for air and her chest begins to ache.

Barriss jumps back up and begins bashing down on Ahsoka's shoto in furious chopping strokes. Ahsoka retreats under the onslaught, and in her blind panic, she doesn't realize that Barriss has switched her last chop for an uppercut. She steps in and her pommel smashes into Ahsoka's lip, splitting it open.

Iron and pain explode into Ahsoka's mouth and she stumbles back, holding the back of her hand over the cut to stem the bleeding.

The two young women pause, panting from exertion. Barriss looks at Ahsoka's lip and her eyebrows wrinkle together in a familiar look of quiet anxiety.

"Look what you made me do," she finally says. She clenches her teeth and attacks again. Ahsoka grimaces as she fends Barriss off, launching attack after attack, but in vain. Barriss's 'saber-work is fast enough to block all of it, and Ahsoka finds herself retreating into the nearest building, which is deserted, but operational. The walls are lined with control panels and holoscreens, all lit up with a plethora of buttons and switches.

Ahsoka lifts her pinky and begins to reach out with the Force, tugging on Barriss's heels, pushing an elbow out of place, even tapping her chin up, forcing her head back. Barriss's frustration leaks into the Force, and as her technique suffers, the pressure she puts on Ahsoka eases until she's only just able to block a strike that would've gone right through her arm.

Barriss opens her left palm and Force pushes Ahsoka, sending her flying across the room and into a control panel. Ahsoka's lightsabers gouge the panel under her, making them spark and fail. Pain radiates through Ahsoka along her back, but a quick check assures her that nothing is broken. Barriss crouches, preparing herself to leap at her, but Ahsoka flicks her wrist, throwing her off her feet and crashing into a holoscreen. The screen shatters to pieces. Barriss bounces off another control panel and tumbles to the floor in a shower of glass.

"Ah!" Ahsoka gets to her feet and slices through the room environment control pad that's embedded in the wall, taking out the lights and the air conditioning. She deactivates her lightsabers and jumps up to cling to the darkened ceiling. Barriss stands up and ignites a lightsaber to see.

"I know you're in here," Barriss says. The light from her lightsaber doesn't reach high enough to illuminate Ahsoka's hiding spot. Ahsoka suddenly feels like she has all the time in the galaxy, and she takes a moment to ease her breathing and wait for the pain to leave her chest. Barriss isn't going anywhere.

Ahsoka reaches out with the Force and opens up one of the doors on the other end of the room, making Barriss look that way. Then, she drops to the floor behind Barriss's back, as silent as a ghost. Ahsoka slowly slinks up behind Barriss. When she gets close, Barriss stiffens and turns, swinging her lightsaber down at her head. Before she can finish the swing, Ahsoka catches Barriss's wrist in her left hand and punches Barriss in the face with her right, snapping her head back.

She punches her again, just in case.

While Barriss is still reeling, Ahsoka wraps her hand over Barriss's fingers and twists, loosening her grip on her lightsaber. It rolls into Ahsoka's hand and she rips it away. She twirls it around and holds it before Barriss's throat. The both of them freeze.

"You are beaten," Ahsoka says. "Yield."

"I cannot," Barriss whispers. A dark bruise is already forming around her eye.

"Yield, Barriss. I won't kill you."

"You must." Barriss's eyes snap up to meet Ahsoka's, her irises a clear, brilliant blue. She's crying again, and two tears drop from her chin and sizzle on the blade of the lightsaber. "Do it while you still can."

Ahsoka turns off the lightsaber and tosses it away into the gloom, plunging them both in darkness again. She twists Barriss's arm, forcing her to bow from the strain. She could easily break Barriss's arm in this position.

"Yield!" Ahsoka yells.

"Your mercy is wasted on me!" Barriss uses the Force to pull Ahsoka's feet out from under her, then Force pushes her out of the open door to the balcony outside.

Ahsoka bumps into the metal railing and falls to the floor. She staggers to her feet and takes her lightsabers in hand.

Barriss walks out to the balcony with her lightsabers restored. She comes at Ahsoka with both blades this time, and Ahsoka must defend against a flurry of attacks. Barriss isn't as good at Jar'Kai, however. There is no method, no technique, only constant, furious movement. Ahsoka can deflect most of the attacks with her shoto and with slight movements of her main lightsaber.

Time for something crazy; Ahsoka begins attacking with her shoto blade. One slash, two slashes, meant to establish a pattern to catch Barriss off guard. After the third, she swings her main lightsaber from the bottom up and to her left. Barriss leans back onto her heels to avoid the tip of Ahsoka's lightsaber.

Ahsoka steps in and slashes again. Barriss, who's off balance, cannot dodge in time. She blocks with one lightsaber and Ahsoka spins to the right, using her shoto to slice through the emitter shroud of Barriss's lightsaber in a shower of sparks.

Barriss's scream is cut short. The parts of her ruined lightsaber clatter over the floor, but Ahsoka doesn't notice, because Barriss instinctively releases a pulse of energy, barreling Ahsoka over and sending her tumbling montrals over heels down the balcony. Barriss falls to her knees, her hand over her throat. She coughs and wheezes and when her hands come away, her palm is covered in black blood. Her eyes, now sickly Sith yellow and red, flicker up to Ahsoka, who straightens up, ready.

"AHSOKA!" Barriss rages, but all that comes out is a wet gurgle. Ahsoka runs forward, but doesn't reach her in time. Barriss drops her remaining lightsaber and draws upon the Force, her face screwed up in pain and concentration. The air around her cools to near freezing a split-second before she unleashes Force Lightning at Ahsoka.

Ahsoka's vision is filled with bright crackling light and she goes down, her nose filled with the sharp smell of ozone. Too late, the Force rings an alarm in her head. When Ahsoka hits the floor, smoking, she shouts more in surprise than she does out of pain, but the agony hits her an instant later, ripping through her nerves and muscles like wildfire. Her lightsabers fall from her hands and onto the floor, and she stares up at Barriss in horror.

Barriss lowers her hands, only able to hold the lighting for a little more than a second. She too, watches Ahsoka with her mouth agape. Ahsoka wills herself to get up, and her body screams in protest, but it moves to comply anyway. Barriss's shadow falls over her, and she looks up at the lightsaber in Barriss's hand. She realizes that Barriss will never have a better chance to kill her.

But instead, she turns and runs. Ahsoka picks up her lightsabers and tries to follow her, but she collapses, hitting her head against the floor.

* * *

Barriss once treated an engineering clone trooper who had a missing hand and a nail in his head. He told her that the pain from losing his hand was so unbearably all-consuming that he put a nail-gun to his head in order to distract himself from the first pain. If he had two pains competing for his attention, then maybe they'd be tolerable. Barriss thinks about how right that clone was as she stumbles onto her shuttle, holding her throat.

The pain is so great that she wants to retch, but manages to keep it in as she sets the autopilot on course for Coruscant. That done, she throws open a storage closet and summons the first aid kit. She carries it with her into the refresher, where she sets the kit into the sink and unzips it open.

Barriss glances up and sees yellow eyes looking right at her, hateful and enraged. She stumbles back, bumping into the wall. When the eyes widen in response, she realizes that she's looking at her reflection.

Pain forgotten, she lifts a trembling hand and brushes the outline of the bruise around her eye. Sith. She's Sith now, like she's wanted for a long time. She's worked so hard for it.

Something twists in her gut and out of the simmering anger grows uneasiness. It's been there for a while, plaguing her system, but while she's been able to ignore it in the past, she can't ignore how urgent it feels now.

But reflections will have to wait. Barriss takes up the scissors and cuts through her hood up the side of her neck, then drops the scissors to the floor and rips off her hood, revealing the charred and bloody ruin of her throat. The damage is concentrated at the top, right under her chin. It's not deep enough to catch the tendons and muscles in her neck, nor her major arteries, but it is enough to destroy her voice box.

Fresh anger roils through Barriss. How dare Ahsoka do this to her? When she was just trying to help!

A protocol droid shuffles down the corridor of the ship and stops at the door of the refresher.

May I be of service? He asks. Barriss stares at him for a moment, then whips out her lightsaber and slashes him in two. A few more deft cuts in the droid's head reveals his vocoder, and she summons the small part into her hand. She drops it into the first aid kit and takes out a bottle of alcohol. She twists the top off the bottle first, and covers part of the opening with her thumb. She raises this bottle and shakes it over the vocoder to sterilize it, then shakes over her throat, dousing her neck and the front of her clothes with alcohol.

Fresh agony envelops Barriss and she drops the bottle to the floor in order to clench the rim of the sink, her mouth open in a silent scream. Alcohol spills everywhere, splashing against her boots and making a mess on the floor.

When the pain dulls into a sting, Barriss picks up the half-empty bottle and douses herself again for good measure. A string of silent expletives fall from her mouth, and this time, she throws the bottle onto the floor. The ship rattles around her and a small crack appears in the edge of the mirror. She realizes that she can't perform surgery on herself like this, she'll tear the ship apart, so she rummages through the kit again and comes up with two Bacta anesthetic syringes.

Barriss removes the cap off of one needle and jabs it into her neck, between her injury and one of the tendons. When it's empty, she pulls it out and drops it onto the floor with the bottle. She does the same with the second syringe, only she jabs it in on the other side of the injury. She picks up a scalpel and looks at herself in the mirror as she waits for the anesthetic to take effect. She's bloody and tired, and furious at herself for running away. She's angry at Ahsoka for doing this to her, and angry at Luminara for not being here. The memory of Luminara's voice, annoyingly calm, sounds through her head.

"What treatment do you recommend for this patient, Barriss?"

Cut out the burned flesh and the ruined voice box. Implant the vocoder. Stitch the wound closed and protect the wound with a Bacta patch, which must be changed once a day, or more depending on bleeding. Take pain killers and antibiotics until the wound finishes healing.

Barriss taps on her throat to test the effect of the anesthetic. When she decides that it's sufficiently numb, she lifts her chin to better see in the mirror and brings her scalpel up to begin her surgery.

* * *

Note Bene: Christ, Barriss. What am I gonna do with you, you sad asparagus? Uuuuuugh. You could've had it all, but you playin'.

That pseudo proposal was NOT IN THE OUTLINE, AHSOKA. WTF. Like, okay, I talk shit, but it's actually amazing when you're writing and characters surprise you like that. That's how I know that I've developed chars well.

Offee vs Tano, who won? Who lost? Why?

Wow, that's 10k words in this chapter. Amazing. Please let me know what you think! I had a blast writing this story and I wanna know if you're having fun reading it. Be safe, readers.


	14. Lost and Found

BEEP. BEEP. Ahsoka comes to at the sound of her comlink ringing. She's lying facedown on the floor of the balcony, her lightsabers just beyond her fingertips and ash grit in her eyes. She's sore everywhere. Ahsoka groans as she rolls over onto her back, then answers the call.

"Hello?"

"Ahsoka!" It's Anakin, looking wild and scraggly. "Padmé, uh, she's in labor! What do I do?"

Ahsoka chuckles, then winces and holds her chest. "Take her to the hospital, duh."

"Duh!" Anakin swats his forehead with his palm. "I knew that. Thanks, Snips." He looks closer at her and gestures to her lip and chin. "Who did that to you?"

"Don't worry about it." Ahsoka tries to wipe the blood from her face, only to discover that it's already dried into a tight, second skin. "You should see what I did to Barriss."

"Barriss did that to you?"

"Well yeah, that's what Sith do to people." Ahsoka eases herself onto her feet and picks up her lightsabers.

"Ahsoka," Anakin says. Ahsoka feels a twinge through her Force Bond and she opens up, sending him her weariness and dismay. In return, she feels a similar tiredness from Anakin, coupled with a lingering paranoia and an overwhelming sense of fondness and assurance for her.

"Feels like we could both use some sleep," Ahsoka says.

"I'm sending you my coordinates," Anakin says. "I know I'm not supposed to, but you shouldn't be alone right now. And my wife's giving birth! Will you come?"

Ahsoka gives him a lopsided smirk. "Are you kidding? I wouldn't miss it for the galaxy."

Ahsoka makes her way back to her Jedi Starfighter. R7, still nestled in the astromech socket, spins his head around and screams at her.

"It's good to see you too, buddy." Ahsoka smoothes a palm over the dome of his head and reaches into the cockpit for a bottle of water. She pours some of the water over her face, washing it of blood and grime, then wipes herself on her poncho.

R7 chatters excitedly.

"Yeah no. We're done chasing Sith." Ahsoka slides into the pilot's seat and pulls down the canopy. She puts on the headset, and goes through the pre-flight check.

"Did you get Anakin's coordinates?" She asks.

R7 beeps that yes, he did, and that yes, he already programmed the hyperdrive. Ahsoka peeks at the screen.

"Huh. Centares." Ahsoka's speculated about the Skywalkers' whereabouts many times and her first guess was always Naboo. Padmé has family there, and they could be helping her out with the pregnancy and could help take care of the baby after it's born. Since Padmé's also close to Bail Organa and Mon Mothma, then their respective planets of Alderaan and Chandrila were guesses too.

She didn't expect Centares, of all places, but she can see the appeal. It was a Separatist planet during the Clone Wars, so Republic-wait-Imperial infrastructure wouldn't be set up, making it easier for Anakin and Padmé to slip in under the radar.

It's also a mid-rim planet, and removed far enough from the surveillance of the Empire, but close enough to civilization to give Padmé access to a respectable hospital. It's also situated in the intersection of two hyperspace routes, so should they need to leave, they have many options to choose from.

Ahsoka pilots her starfighter back into space, reattaches the docking ring, but doesn't activate the hyperdrive. In her mind, she's still on the surface of Mustafar with Barriss looming over her. Dark, dark blood, looking almost black under the dim light, trickles down the front of Barriss's clothes from her throat. There's enough so that the stink of sulphur wafts down to her.

R7 whistles at her, and she blinks.

"Can you route a comlink call to Riyo?" she asks. R7 chatters, and the dashboard comlink flickers on. It rings a couple times before Riyo answers.

"I was not asleep! Oh, Ahsoka." Riyo rubs her eyes and smiles tiredly up at her. "Apologies. I thought you were Titon calling to heckle me about working late." She peers closer at her. "Are you alright? Your lip!"

"Hmm." Ahsoka explores the scab with her tongue. "I'm fine. I just…I needed to see you."

Riyo gives her that searching look and Ahsoka wonders how much information she can glean from just a hologram.

"Barriss…is she, uh?"

Ahsoka shakes her head. "She's still alive. Why did I think that she'd still be the Barriss I remember? Stupid!"

"It's not bad to believe in the best of people."

"Yeah, but Barriss isn't interested in being her best. She hasn't for a long time, and I knew that, and I still treated her like…." Ahsoka sighs. "I couldn't kill her. And I pulled my punches like an idiot."

"Oh 'Soka."

"We fought, but she escaped. She's hurt, but that might not matter much. Barriss was a powerful Jedi, so why shouldn't she make a fantastic Sith too?" Ahsoka winces at how bitter that last part comes out. "Even now I think, maybe she's still in there somewhere, but it's buried deep. I don't know. I don't know if I want to find out. Everything's so messed up."

"If I may, I'm not sure if that's any of your concern anymore. She hurt you."

"I hurt her too."

"You know that's not the same. I don't think you owe Barriss anything, Ahsoka, not after what she did to you."

Ahsoka fidgets in her seat, but nods. "Yeah. Hey, Anakin sent me his coordinates, so I'm headed over there to be moral support while Padmé gives birth. Wanna come?"

Riyo's jaw drops in a rare look of surprise. "Padmé's in labor? Right now?"

"Yeah! Come on, I'll pick you up."

"Where?"

"Centares."

"Oh! Hmm." Riyo's eyebrows crinkle together as she does a few sums in her head. "Swinging by to pick me up will take too long and they need you now. You'll just have to represent us both, Ahsoka. Send Padmé my love."

"I will. I'll talk to you later, Riyo." Ahsoka hangs up. As soon as the call ends, R7 activates the hyper drive. The vast emptiness of space gives way to the bright blue streaks of hyperspace and when R7 takes over piloting, Ahsoka leans back in her seat and sighs.

Barriss has been busy. A part of Ahsoka realizes that it's unfair to make that comparison, but still. She opens up one of the compartments to reveal the Jedi Holocron, which leaks warmth and safety. She takes it between her hands and falls into meditation. Breathe in. Out.

The holocron opens, filling the cockpit with ethereal blue light.

* * *

Ahsoka, dressed once more in her poncho, makes her way through the Centares hospital, skirting around personnel and medicine carts. R7 follows behind her, his head spinning around to take in the busy sights and sounds. They turn the corner into the maternity ward and almost bump into Obi-Wan, who sits on a bench with his robes wrapped tightly around him.

"Master Kenobi!" Ahsoka puts a hand on his shoulder to steady herself, but doesn't remove it when he looks up at her, dazed.

"Ahsoka!" Obi-Wan's blue eyes widen in surprise and he scoots down the bench to give her room to sit. "It's good to see you."

"It's good to see you too." Ahsoka sits down next to him and gives him a smile. "Are you alright?"

"I'm still processing Anakin's double life," Obi-Wan says. "He's like my brother, and I didn't even know."

"It's a lot to take in."

"You knew," Obi-Wan accuses. Before Ahsoka can answer, he leans in, concerned.

"Your lip."

"Oh I healed it a while ago, I'm just waiting for the scab to fall off."

Obi-Wan nods and straightens up, looking rather pleased. "Finally delving into Force Healing?"

"Yeah." Ahsoka ducks her head. "Kinda late, but yeah."

Obi-Wan strokes his beard as he watches her, waiting for something else to come out.

Ahsoka twiddles her thumbs then finally says, "do I even have a right to expand my Force powers? I'm not Jedi anymore."

"Funny thing about Force powers is that they're called 'Force' powers, not 'Jedi' powers. Try as the Council might, the Order doesn't have a monopoly. We cannot hoard the Force for ourselves like misers and I don't think we're supposed to. The gifts that the Force grants the galaxy are meant to be shared." Obi-Wan's beard twitches as he smiles at her. "You're Force-sensitive, Ahsoka. That transcends anything as mundane as labels such as Jedi or civilian. If you want to learn more about your powers, you need only answer to the Force."

She doesn't need permission, of course, and even if she didn't get it, it wouldn't stop her, but she still gives Obi-Wan a grateful smile.

"Thanks, Master Kenobi. Where's Anakin?"

But as soon as she asks that, the door before them slides open and Anakin staggers out, disheveled and pale. He's traded his Jedi robes for a technician's jacket and pants, and his scraggly beard has been trimmed into stubble. Even his hair has been pulled back from his face and is tied with a band. The door shuts quickly behind him, but not before Ahsoka catches a glimpse of a heavily pregnant Padmé throwing a bedpan at a hapless medical droid and shrieking.

"Skyguy!" Ahsoka says.

"Snips!" Anakin opens his arms wide and gives Ahsoka a tight hug. "You made it! I haven't seen you in forever."

"I missed you too," she mumbles into his chest. The Force Bond snaps into place between them like a rubber band and hums contentedly.

Anakin smells like engine oil and grease, like he got the call from Padmé while he was still at work. When they finally pull apart, Anakin proudly holds her at arms length so that he can get a good look at her.

"You got taller."

"I did. How's Padmé?"

"Padmé's been having contractions for hours and she's still dilating. She does not want to see me right now, so I'll sneak in later."

Anakin and Ahsoka sit on the bench with Obi-Wan, and the three of them talk. Life away from the Jedi Order has been good to Anakin. He moves and speaks with the open ease of a man who has nothing to hide. He smiles, with teeth. He actually hugs Ahsoka more than once, and hugs Obi-Wan too. He talks about Padmé. Padmé said this the other day. Padmé did that. When the Dark Side tempted him, and oh Force, did It tempt him, Padmé was the one who threw logic at him until he relented.

Ahsoka decides that she likes this new Anakin.

Obi-Wan, on the other hand, seems to not know what to do with this more unrestrained Anakin. When Anakin hugs him tight enough to actually lift him off the floor, he looks with wide eyes over Anakin's shoulder at Ahsoka, who covers her mouth to stifle a laugh.

"What's going to happen to the Order now?" Ahsoka asks. "You're alive, Master Kenobi, and so is Yoda."

"Talk, we shall." Yoda limps down the hallway towards them, his ears drooping. In that moment, he looks alarmingly old and frail. "Come with me. Even you, Skywalker, and you, young Tano."

The three of them follow Yoda to a staff break room, which is empty of hospital workers at the moment. Even though the sickly sweet smell of Bacta and bleach permeates everywhere in this hospital, in here it's tempered by the smell of caf that billows from a caf maker that's halfway through squeezing out a fresh pot.

Sitting on an old couch against the wall is Luminara.

"Master Unduli," Ahsoka says. Luminara gives her a slight nod of the head.

"News, you have, Luminara?" Yoda climbs onto a chair. Obi-Wan, Ahsoka, and Anakin sit at the break table and move their chairs around so that they can see everyone else.

"Shaak Ti is alive," Luminara says. "She's in hiding with a few younglings on Coruscant and she's gravely injured. Other survivors are in hiding throughout the galaxy, and I suspect that there are more who have not reached out."

"Find them, we must, before the Empire does." Yoda turns to Anakin. "Talk, we should, before we move on. Left the Order you did, because of Attachment."

Anakin lifts his chin, defiant. "The Jedi Order may not always want me, but Padmé always will. I made a choice."

"Disappointed, I am."

"I'm not ashamed," Anakin says. His voice wavers only a little bit. "I don't have to be a Jedi to be a good man."

"But you are the Chosen One," Obi-Wan says. "You would abandon us to the Dark Side?"

"I didn't say I wouldn't help!" Anakin says. Open pain flickers over his face. "The Emperor is evil and I see that now. I will do what I must."

"Mmm. Good to hear, that is," Yoda says. "Bring balance to the Force, you shall. It has been foretold."

Anakin shifts in his seat and opens his mouth to say something, but Yoda holds up a claw. "Fight for freedom, if freedom is what you wish for your family. Defeat the Emperor, you must."

Ahsoka lays a hand over his mechanical one. "You can do it, Skyguy," she says. "We'll help you."

Anakin looks at her, then at Obi-Wan, who gazes back with clear surety.

"You'll never be rid of me, Anakin. Where you go, I will follow."

"You guys are nuts," Anakin says. "We're talking about fighting a Sith Lord. THE Sith Lord!"

"We've fought Sith Lords before," Obi-Wan says.

"Yeah! And I kind of kicked Maul's ass on Malachor," Ahsoka says. "If anyone's gonna help you defeat this guy, it's gonna be us."

Anakin cracks a cautious, but hopeful smile. Obi-Wan gives him an expectant look and even Ahsoka cocks an eyebrow marking.

"Okay! Okay." His smile widens into a grin and he roughly takes both Ahsoka's and Obi-Wan's hands tightly in his, but when he remembers who else is watching, he clears his throat and stands up.

"I have to check in on Padmé." And with that, he leaves the break room. Ahsoka follows him out and catches up to him in the wide hallway.

"Wait up, Skyguy! Hey, aren't you going the wrong way?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"I need a break."

"What's wrong?" Ahsoka asks. After a moment, Anakin sighs.

"I don't know anything about being a father."

Ahsoka catches his elbow and looks askance at him. "You're not gonna run out on Padmé, are you?"

"No way!" Anakin's nose wrinkles in disgust at the thought. "But I just…. What if I mess up?"

"Then Padmé will fix it," Ahsoka says. "And maybe Obi-Wan and I could help. You're not doing this alone, you know."

Anakin cocks an eyebrow down at her. "You wanna help?"

"Yeah, how could I not? Remember Stinky?"

"That huttlet doesn't count!"

Ahsoka laughs and even though Anakin's frown doesn't disappear, a pulse of amusement shoots down the bond from him. "Okay, it doesn't. But still, you won't mess up."

"You know this for a fact because?"

Ahsoka hesitates and glances down at her boots. When she talks again, her voice is small and fragile. "Well, I like to think that I turned out okay."

Anakin seems floored, then a smile spreads across his face that threatens to split it in two. The Force flares around them both, warm and incredibly fond.

"Thanks, Ahsoka."

Ahsoka smiles back. "Anytime."

* * *

Riyo might have thought that she was ill prepared to be a Rebel spy, with all the sneaking around and the cloak and dagger things, but as it turns out, she's actually well-equipped. Thanks to her previous job as a family law litigator, Riyo has known how to secure a holo-transmission since she graduated. It's mandatory in her line of work; women's and children's shelters need that privacy, and other clients refuse to take any unsecured calls. She also has a small bin of burner comlinks and even a few burner data pads for the same reasons. It's very easy for Riyo to convert these objects for her use as a spy and she's slightly alarmed by how quickly things come together.

After the Emperor's announcement yesterday, hundreds of thousands of people flooded the streets of their respective planets all over the galaxy in protest. Bail was able to make a list of most of the systems before the Empire shut the Holonet down (again), and he and a few others have been contacting the protest organizers.

If Bail's information is correct, there will be a lot of people who need a lot of supplies, and not just ships and blasters either. They'll need a steady supply of food, clothing, medical equipment. It's easier for Mon Mothma to secure these things as the senator of a highly connected and industrialized planet.

As for Riyo, who was a notorious shit-starter on Pantora and who has dragged that reputation with her to Coruscant, her role in the Rebellion is less wholesome. Bail and Mon are too important to risk with some tasks. Tasks like building an underground network of undesirables. Riyo knows a thing or two about unwanted people, and she knows that unwanted people are the ones who see and hear the most and aren't seen or heard in return.

After a thorough bug sweep, and after Riyo has sent both of her aides out to run errands, she begins making comlink calls through one of her burners. She contacts brothel madams, bounty hunters, criminals, housekeepers and other service staff, including those that work in the Senate Office building. She even calls Asajj Ventress.

"Senator Chuchi?" Asajj says as soon as her hologram bust shows up. "What do you want?"

"You were an assassin during the Clone Wars," Riyo says. "Do you still possess those skills?"

Asajj quirks an eyebrow up. "You want me to assassinate someone?"

"If need be, but as of now, no. I need a spy; someone who can get into places that no one else can."

"You want me to join the Resistance." It isn't a question.

"Yes. How did you hear of the Resistance?"

"Before the Holonet was cut, there was nothing but news of protest. It's not too much of a stretch to expect them to associate with each other."

"But it's all just speculation?"

"Don't worry, Chuchi. No one has proof that your movement exists."

"Good. Will you help us?"

"Selflessness isn't quite my style."

"You could do with a makeover," Riyo says, and Asajj sneers at that. She can disagree all she wants, but her disheveled helmet hair isn't going to help her case. "It would give you opportunities to sabotage the Empire, which is run by the Sith Lord who abandoned you."

"I don't do revenge anymore. Besides, anyone willing to cross Darth Sidious is asking to be put in the ground."

"How about a better target? His new apprentice, Barriss Offee?"

Asajj's eyes narrow. "Keep talking."

Riyo tries not to grin. "The Rebellion would be more than just a thorn in the side of the Empire if it had someone with your skill set. What do you think?"

"Every time you and Ahsoka com me, it's to ask me to do some truly stupid things."

"Is that a no?"

"I'll do it. This does not make us friends."

Riyo actually does smile at that. "Duly noted."

Asajj ends the call. Riyo hides the comlink in her jacket and unlocks her door. No sooner than she does this, Vigo steps into her office.

"You wanted to see me, Senator?"

"I did. Please come in." Riyo has them take a seat. "Are you happy here, Vigo? I mean, you know you can use me as a reference if you want to transfer to another office."

"Are you kidding me? You're an awesome boss!" Vigo says. "I don't know if you've heard, but other aides work for some terrible senators. They yell. They throw things."

Riyo knows. Everyone who's spent any amount of time in the Senate Office Building knows, and she steels herself for what she is about to do next.

"I ask because I'm about to do something incredibly dangerous and possibly ruinous, and I don't want to drag you down with me if I can help it."

Vigo tilts their head. "Ma'am?"

Riyo puts two thick envelopes on her desk. She puts a hand on one of them. "This envelope contains several letters of recommendation and a handsome severance pay. If you take this one, I will not begrudge you, but you must leave and never come back for your own safety." She moves her hand to the other envelope. "If you decide to stay, then you must help and while it will be dangerous and largely thankless, I promise you will be doing a lot of good."

Vigo looks at the envelopes, then up at Riyo. "You know, I've kind of watched you grow up. When I first came in here, you were a kid, and now we're here." They reach out and take the second envelope. "It would be an honor, ma'am. What do you need me to do?"

"Some of those mistreated aides you mentioned earlier work for senators who fanatically support the Emperor. I would like you to establish a rapport with them and to be my point of contact with them."

Vigo winks and shuffles the envelope under their arm. "Already done."

Riyo smiles and gives Vigo two encrypted data cards. "Tape one under the table in the nearest caf house. The other goes in the gutter out back near the dumpsters. Don't be seen."

Vigo nods and leaves. Riyo's compiled her contact list on those data cards. Should anything happen to her, Bail and Mon would be able to run her illicit network. It's a sobering thought, but Bail and Mon have made similar contingencies.

* * *

Padmé has been in labor for hours. Her hospital room is filled with the doctor, nurses, medical droids, and Anakin, all helping her get through this difficult process. There's no room for Ahsoka and Obi-Wan, so they wait on a bench in the hallway outside. Yoda is conspicuously absent, as is Luminara. Ahsoka thought about asking Obi-Wan how the meeting went after she and Anakin left, but he's deep in meditation.

It's kind of impressive, as hospitals aren't very peaceful places. Even in the middle of night, there's always this nervous energy that sets Force-sensitives on edge. It's probably because life and death are too close together here; the line between them too thin. It's also strong enough that even non-sensitives get jittery.

Ahsoka leans back against the wall, folds her hands over her lap, and closes her eyes. She times her breathing to fall in with Obi-Wan's and he seems to know it, because he alters his breathing to match hers. They soon reach a happy medium, and they create a small pocket of peace amidst the nervous buzzing energy of the hospital.

Time slows to a crawl. Sounds are muffled and Ahsoka even loses feeling in her skin. She's become impervious to cold and heat as her body turns into a tool for the Force. Then, getting louder, as if coming closer from a distance, is screaming, long and agonized. It's not Padmé in the other room, and it's not from the Force. It's….

"Riyo." Ahsoka opens her eyes, her stomach heavy as if filled with lead. She stands and walks down the hallway so that she can com her. After a few rings, Riyo picks up.

"Ahsoka!" Riyo's hologram smiles up at her. She seems well, and Ahsoka's pleased, but confused.

"Riyo! Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine. Why?"

"I just had a vision that you were in trouble."

Riyo's eyes widen. "Bad trouble?"

"The worst. I think…I think you need to get off Coruscant."

"Hmm." Riyo's eyebrows crinkle in thought. "Alright. I'll leave as soon as I can, but I still need to take care of some things before I go. I'll call you later, okay?"

"Okay." The call ends and Ahsoka stares at the comlink a little longer, her worry like a stone in her gut.

* * *

Riyo ends the call and drops the holo-comlink back into her bag. Magnus, who sits in the driver's seat of the speeder, says nothing, but Titon, who sits shotgun, frowns.

"Do you believe Ahsoka's visions?" he asks.

"Hmm." Riyo rubs her eyes, tired from staring at holoscreens all day. "I'd be a fool not to. Ahsoka saved Padmé through visions once, and she foresaw the destruction of the Jedi Order. Whatever future she saw for me, it'll probably come to pass."

Magnus's frown deepens into a scowl. "It can try. I'll prep the ship for departure. We'll leave in a half hour."

"That's probably for the best," Riyo says. "Whatever else I still need to do, I can do from Pantora."

Magnus parks the speeder on a parking strip and the three of them get out and follow Riyo up to her apartment. But when the doors open, it isn't to an empty living room. Barriss, dressed in black with a dark green bruise around her eye, sits on the couch with a smoothie in hand and watches the holoscreen turned on low.

"Ah! Hello, Riyo," Barriss says. A shiver rolls up Riyo's spine at the sound of her voice modulator and for a second, she thinks that she might be talking to an imposter.

"It's been a while."

"You lost my friendship the moment you betrayed Ahsoka," Riyo says. She feels Magnus and Titon tense up behind her, their hands on the hilts of their swords.

"Mmm." Barriss hums in agreement as she sips from a straw. "Speaking of Ahsoka, she's the reason why I'm here. You see, all Jedi are traitors to the Empire. They are to be given no help, and if the rumors are to be believed, you've been giving a lot of help to one Jedi in particular."

She tosses a tabloid flimsimag at Riyo. It lands on the floor at her feet. There, on the bottom lefthand corner, are Riyo and Ahsoka's pictures accompanied by the headline, Star-Crossed!

"Don't bother denying it. It's written down right there." Barriss takes one last sip of her smoothie and places it on the coffee table, then stands up. "Senator Riyo Chuchi, you are under arrest for providing aid and comfort to the enemy, namely one Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano."

Riyo blinks, not quite registering that the arrest that she has dreaded for so long is finally happening. There is a prickle of fear at the back of her neck, but mostly, she feels relief that she's being charged with treason, and not sedition. She thinks about the derringer blaster strapped to the small of her back, but Magnus and Titon are faster, and they draw their swords.

"You won't take her," Magnus growls. Barriss laughs and Riyo breaks out in a cold sweat at the sound.

"Who's going to stop me? You?" Barriss draws her lightsaber and ignites it, casting an angry red light throughout the room. Titon gasps, but he's not looking at Barriss, he's looking down the hall, where a few troopers stand at a distance, waiting. They come from both sides of the hallway, and Titon turns to shield Riyo with the flat of his blade.

"Set your blasters to stun," one of the troopers says.

"Titon," Magnus whispers. "Get the Senator to safety."

"Yes, sir."

"Magnus, no!" Riyo hisses. Magnus glances down at her and sets one of his large hands on her shoulder.

"Let me do my job, Riyo." And with that, he pushes her out of the apartment and into Titon, who grabs her to keep her upright. Magnus slams the pommel of his sword into the controller pad, breaking it and making the door slam shut behind him. Barriss's enraged shriek can be heard through the door, followed by the sound of a whirling lightsaber.

Titon turns and swings his sword, catching a trooper in the neck. Another twist of his arm knocks the barrel of a blaster aside, making another trooper miss, and Titon hacks down on his hip, right where the gap in his armor is. That trooper screams and goes down too. A jab sends the sword point through the visor of the third trooper, dropping him instantly.

"Ack!" Riyo chokes as another trooper behind her curls an arm around her neck and drags her back, pulling her off balance. Her hands go up to grab the trooper's arm to keep his hold from tightening.

"I've got her," the trooper says, but Riyo's not done. She reaches out and whips her hand around, smacking the trooper's visor. If it weren't for his helmet, Riyo would have scratched out his eye.

"Ah, kark!" the trooper flinches and loosens his grip. With the same hand, Riyo grabs the first two of the trooper's fingers and peels it away with enough momentum to break his fingers and tear his arm from around her neck. She pushes him away and runs down the hall to Titon, who is in the middle of felling his third trooper.

"She's fast!" one of the troopers shouts. "Get her!"

Titon bashes the remaining trooper against the wall, clearing a path. "Go!" he shouts. Riyo runs past him and down the hall, her pulse pounding in her ears. Titon's right behind her and the both of them fly down the stairs towards the parking strip.

PEW PEW. Stormtroopers aim their blasters down the stairwell at them and shoot, trying to stun them. Riyo ducks her head and keeps running, and as she runs, she takes out a comlink and calls Bail.

"Hello?"

"AXLE!" Riyo shouts over the noise. "They're arresting me for harboring Ahsoka. I'm compromised."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't! They don't know about the other thing. Contact my aide. They'll know what to do." Riyo smashes the comlink under her boot heel and continues to run. She and Titon burst out from the front doors and run down the parking strip to their speeder, but before they reach it, it explodes.

BOOM.

Riyo screams and ducks. Titon grabs her around the waist and pulls her down behind the nearest parked speeder.

Two lightsaber slashes burn through Riyo's wide apartment window in an 'x.' The window flexes out and shatters under the Force. The few troopers who have followed Riyo and Titon onto the strip step out of the way of the falling glass. Barriss jumps from Riyo's broken apartment window and lands on the strip, sending up a cloud of dust. She holds her smoothie in her left hand and after she straightens up, she takes a leisurely sip. She turns to a trooper.

"Is this blumfruit?"

"And starbloom, sir. Supposed to be full of antioxidants."

"It's very good. Thank you, Draa." Barriss regards the parking strip. "I know you're here, Senator!" She shouts. "Please come out."

Behind the speeder, Titon turns to Riyo. "You have to run. I can fight them long enough for you to escape."

"What?" Riyo whispers, incredulous.

"People need you."

"People need you too! Titon, don't do this."

Titon gives her a grim smile, then stands up to face Barriss. Riyo bites a knuckle to keep herself from crying out and crouches low to sneak back behind the long row of speeders. The troopers aim their blasters at Titon, but Barriss holds up her hand and they lower their weapons.

"That's very valiant of you," Barriss says, "but you won't last longer than the other one did."

"You don't know that," Titon says. He grips the handle of his sword with both hands, ready.

"Actually, I do." Barriss lazily flicks a hand and Force Pushes him off the side of the parking strip. He falls into the undercity of Coruscant, screaming. Riyo claps a hand over her mouth to stifle her shout.

Barriss pauses to take another sip of her smoothie.

"Senator Chuchi!" She shouts. "Please don't run, you'll just die tired. Come out."

Riyo knows that she's still hidden, but she shakes her head no anyway.

"Fine, have it your way. Wind blow high, wind blow low."

BOOM. The speeder next to Riyo crumples into scrap, and she ducks behind another speeder just in time to avoid being Force Pushed off the strip with it.

"When it comes, out you go!"

BOOM. Riyo flinches as the speeder on the other side of the one she hides behind is trashed and pushed off the strip too, leaving a gap behind her and a gap before her. She's trapped.

"I told you to come out, Senator," Barriss says as if admonishing a youngling. "Face the consequences for betraying the Empire."

Riyo takes her derringer in her hand. It fits neatly in her palm and it's warm from her body heat. She's always expected to be black-bagged, either by the order of the late Chairman Cho, or by some vengeful, spurned relative of one of her clients. She's aways been mentally prepared to face it, but she's always imagined she'd have to face it alone.

The silka bead bracelet clicks as she moves her arm. Riyo doesn't have a connection to the Force, but maybe…maybe Ahsoka can still sense how sorry she is and how even though she regrets going down like this, she doesn't regret the reason why. Riyo clenches her jaw and straightens up.

"My allegiance is to democracy, not to the Emperor. Long live the Republic!" Riyo raises her blaster and fires.

PEW PEW.

Barriss dodges the first shot, and brings out her lightsaber to block the second. She holds her smoothie down behind her hip to keep it from being hit by a blaster bolt. Riyo keeps firing, and moves around so that she isn't a clear target for the remaining troopers.

PEW PEW.

Barriss reflects the last two shots back at Riyo, hitting her hand and her chest. Riyo drops like a stone. She curls in on herself, cradling her hand to her body.

"Nnnngh!" Riyo closes her mouth around a whimper as the troopers close in on her. Her pointer finger's gone. Her finger's gone, leaving behind of burnt stump of raw nerves and chipped bone that she tries to shield from everything as best she can. Her shirt's stained deep purple from her efforts, not just from her hand, but also from the burning hole in her chest. That injury emanates sharp agony from torn viscera.

Forget getting arrested, Riyo realizes that she's going to die. Her world goes dark as a black bag is pulled over her head.

* * *

Once Riyo's strapped down, the bag's pulled off and she turns her head against the blare of the overhead lights. She's on an examination table in an unmarked, duracrete room. Riyo can't see the door from her position, but she can see a long mirror set in one of the walls. A two-way mirror, no doubt.

Riyo's still shivering from excruciating pain. The ride to this place has only made her condition worse, and she's lost a lot of blood. She already stinks of copper and knows that her shirt's soaked despite the pressure that Barriss put on the wounds on the way over here.

"Focus, Senator," Barriss snaps her fingers in front of Riyo's face. She lowers a medical kit on the table by Riyo's head.

"You." Riyo tries to take deep breaths to keep herself from getting sick, but only succeeds in aggravating her chest wound. All she can manage is short, shallow breaths. She shoots Barriss the hardest glare she can muster, but Barriss scoffs.

"Me. I need to treat you before you succumb from shock and blood loss."

"You're not going to kill me?"

"Not yet." Barriss unzips the medical kit and takes out a pair of scissors, which she taps against her own cheek as she looks Riyo up and down. After a moment, she cuts through part of Riyo's shirt and pulls away the soaked material to reveal the gruesome injury.

Riyo slams up her mental shields and says, "I want my comlink call."

Barriss laughs as she unscrews the top off of a bottle of cleansing Bacta. "You don't get a comlink call."

"It's my right."

"You don't have rights in here. There are no juries to judge you and there are no trials. There's just me. You see, I've gotten the Emperor some prodigious results these past couple days and he's entrusted me with a rather important project."

"I didn't think I even registered on the Emperor's radar."

"Oh don't be so vain, Senator. You're not my main victim."

Riyo finds this very hard to believe as Barriss pours Bacta over her wounds, irrigating them and sending a fresh wave of searing pain through Riyo's system. She groans.

"Stay with me." Barriss puts the bottle away and pulls out Bacta patches, rolls of gauze, and tape. A numbing agent must be in that Bacta, because after a few seconds, the pain gives way to a tingling. Barriss begins wrapping Riyo's hand.

"Who is your target?" Riyo asks, her voice shaking. She's already connecting many dots, but she needs confirmation. "What do you want?"

"Ahsoka. Is she yours to give?"

"Ahsoka's not an object."

"No, she's not," Barriss says, her face calm and knowing. "But as I am an injured party to her crimes, her blood is my property."

"Her crimes?" Of all the outrageous things that Riyo's heard, that one rates in the top five. "You destroyed her! You took everything from her when she was only kind to you. You are the furthest thing from a victim here."

Barriss's mouth twists in a vicious scowl. "She slit my throat."

"Well, it's not as if you were using your voice anyway. Why talk when a bomb will do?"

Barriss's eyes widen and Riyo ploughs on with reckless abandon. "Yes, I said that. You may hate the Jedi Council for how aloof and condescending they are, but you're no better. Instead of engaging Ahsoka in a discussion, you led her around by the nose through a torturous experiment."

"She wasn't an experiment!"

"She was an experiment to you! She was a lab rat!" Riyo shouts, her gaze fixed on Barriss with a burning intensity. "You wanted to see if you could turn her, so you dropped her in a maze you constructed to see what she would do. What would you have done if you succeeded in convicting her? Spring her from jail? Pretend to give up the Jedi Order for her and go gallivanting around the galaxy with just the two of you?"

Barriss flinches and Riyo sneers.

"Aha! Pathetic. But that doesn't matter now, not when your plan failed. That was my fault, by the way. I am the juror who did the filibuster."

The table jolts as Barriss unleashes the Force upon the prison cell. The med kit trembles beside Riyo's head and she braces herself for a killing blow that never comes. When she opens her eyes, she finds Barriss staring murderously at her, a scalpel clenched in her fist. The blade is stuck halfway through the table top. An inch closer and it would have gone through Riyo's neck.

"You're better than I thought," Barriss says through clenched teeth. Every sinew in her body is pulled tight against her rage and she's tense with the Force and dark promise. "Trying to make me kill you? Very cunning."

Riyo doesn't answer right away, still reeling from the stifling amount of bloodlust filling the cell. The goading bravado from earlier is gone, replaced with a cool—if shaky—indifference that borders on dismissive.

"It was worth a shot."

Barriss yanks the scalpel from the table and tosses it back into the med kit. She continues to wrap Riyo's hand as if nothing has happened.

"Does Ahsoka know how manipulative you are?"

"That's not a leading question at all. Don't worry, Offee. I'm not a con artist like you are."

Barriss scowls and lifts her hand. "Tell me where Ahsoka Tano is."

At first, Riyo's confused. She's had the Force used on her before, once while on the Trade Federation ship. It was a curious, tingly sensation that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up, but it was benign. Riyo doesn't know if it's due to it being the Light Side of the Force, or because it was Ahsoka who used it on her.

This Force touch is nothing like that. It darkens Riyo's vision and stuffs her skull with cotton to stopper her thought processes. It brutally brings her will under heel so that there is nothing but the overwhelming need to tell Barriss where Ahsoka Tano is.

"Ugh." Riyo scrunches her eyes tight and turns away. Ahsoka's with Anakin Skywalker, she wants to say, to her horror. She's with Padmé Amidala.

"Tell me where Ahsoka Tano is."

"Mmmno," Riyo whispers. She's sweating in the remains of her suit from exertion and her pulse thunders in her ears. The sense of wrongness grows, comparable to the Stratt in the alehouse hiking up her skirt, and Riyo struggles against her restraints in panic. "No! Stop!"

"Tell me where Ahsoka Tano is."

"She's, she's…." The words are dragged from her before she even realizes it. Riyo opens her mouth and sticks out her tongue as far as it will go and Barriss drops the Force trick in favor of keeping her from biting down.

"Stop! Stop."

The cotton clears and Riyo closes her mouth, her tongue intact. The two women watch each other for a minute, both still surprised at what has just happened. Eventually, Barriss continues her work. She finishes wrapping Riyo's hand and drops it onto the table, then glances at the silka bead bracelet on Riyo's wrist.

"Stubborn silence isn't going to save your fiancée," she says. Riyo gasps, and Barriss sends a mind probe at her. The both of them whirl down into her mind. Memories flash, all violent color and sound as Barriss rifles through them, looking for her prize.

"Hello, I'm Senator Amidala…."

A red Twi'lek girl smiles down at her, the tips of her lekku twitching. "You're that lawyer that psycho tried to stab! I've read about you. Wanna get caf sometime?"

"When someone puts their hands on you, Senator, you hit hard, hit fast, and hit often. And don't stop for anything."

Riyo struggles against the deluge of memories, but Barriss is adamant and soon, Ahsoka looks down at her from her bunk, her pupils glowing.

"It's a Togruta thing. Come here."

Oh no. Riyo fills up with righteous fury and pulls, jerking control of her consciousness back from Barriss. She summons everything she's ever read in law school and bombards her under a ton of dry information, just passage after passage of words. Barriss almost crumbles under it, and the pressure on Riyo's mind eases, but Barriss lashes out, gaining control once more. With each memory that Barriss digs up, Riyo's desperation grows.

Ahsoka stands in her living room and goes through a few basic maneuvers with her new lightsabers. Riyo almost swears that she's glowing.

Ahsoka gently nips at the soft, thin skin on the inside of Riyo's wrist.

Ahsoka lies in a hospital bed, hooked up to a ventilator.

Riyo bristles. If Barriss wants memories so badly, she'll gladly give them. Riyo summons a similar memory of a female Twi'lek slave, in the hospital with a broken arm and a shredded back.

"But my children!" she cries as she grips Riyo's hand. "What'll happen to my children?"

"I got nothing," a disheveled teenager cries. "What do I do now? Where do I go?"

A youngling, wearing an eyepatch, sits hunched in his chair and silently cries in her office while a youngling advocate talks. Riyo can't look away from him.

"Found her on the street," an officer says. A surly Pantoran teenager around Riyo's age stands just behind his shoulder and looks determinedly at her shoes. "She's been living on her own for a while."

Gods, that could be Riyo in a different universe.

Barriss falls silent, distracted by the long parade of people that Riyo's helped, all of them refusing to meet her eyes in shame over things they had no control over. Finally, Riyo grabs Barriss's mind probe and throws it out, but doesn't let up on the stream of memories until she brings her mental shields back up.

When she blinks back awake, she finds Barriss still looming over her, watching.

"I can see why she likes you," Barriss whispers. She picks up a towel and dries off the skin around Riyo's collarbone, then rips open another Bacta patch.

"I'm not giving up her location," Riyo says.

"No, you won't. You could do this all day, and I have things to do." Barriss places the Bacta patch over Riyo's wound and picks up the roll of gauze. A curious weightlessness settles over Riyo and she realizes that Barriss is using the Force on her to levitate her torso so that she can roll the gauze around her back and over her shoulder in a complicated wrap.

"You're probably thinking that I'm going to ransom you, and you'd be right if I were a common pirate. I could film you in your deplorable state and send a recording to Ahsoka, but I have no address. I could broadcast you over the Holonet, but that would martyr you and it would make the Emperor look bad. And there's no guarantee that Ahsoka would ever see it. No, I cannot do that." Barriss finishes the wrap and puts Riyo down.

"So what will you do?" Riyo asks, dread seeping into her gut.

"You and Ahsoka are…close," Barriss says. The only sign of her dismay is the cinching of her eyebrows. "She's connected to you through the Force and she'll feel what you feel. If she felt that you were in agony, she would come for you."

"That's why you need me alive."

"Yes."

Riyo's shirt, now mostly dry, is pieced back together and held in place with small plastic clips.

"Still a medic?"

"Yes."

"You're a fraud," Riyo says. Barriss glares imperiously down at her, but she glares back. "You took an oath when you became a medic, and you violated it the instant you lifted your weapon to strike at innocent people."

"There are no innocent Jedi."

"Younglings, Offee! And you haven't just harmed Jedi. You killed my father, and my dear friend, who have never harmed anyone who didn't deserve it."

"Many people must be dealt with if there is to be peace in the galaxy."

Riyo stares. "Peace? All this cruelty will never give you peace. I still live. For how long, who knows? And you can hardly call my situation living. Surely you must know how sadistic this is, saving a life just so you can put it in danger again."

"You regret my mercy?"

"Mercy doesn't align with your chosen path. You can be Sith, or you can be a medic, but you cannot be both. Your fellow doctors won't approve of you bringing about this much devastation. And saving lives is not the Sith way."

"What do you know about Sith?"

"I know enough. Tell me I'm wrong. Tell me about all the lives you've saved out of the goodness of your heart since becoming Darth Kayip. Tell me about this peace you've created."

Barriss's eyes narrow, but she doesn't answer. She clips a shock collar around Riyo's neck, then goes over to the mirror and raps her knuckles on it.

"Trooper," she says.

A muffled "yes, sir," comes from behind it.

"This woman is a traitor to the Empire. Do not show her any mercy, or I will take that as a sign that you want to take her place."

"Yes, sir."

"She's not to eat, nor sleep. The only comfort you give her is water. Understood?"

"Yes, sir."

"Show me." Barriss turns around and watches Riyo carefully. A second later, and the shock collar is activated, electrocuting her. Riyo thrashes in vain against her bonds and screams.

* * *

Note Bene: RIP, Riyo's finger. Ahsoka will miss you very much (ayyyyy). Did I crack that joke too soon? Sorry, I've been sitting on this chapter for months and we need a little fun at this point.

Chuchi vs Offee, who won? Who lost? Why?

Please leave feedback! Please! Kudos give me strength. Reviews clear my skin. Let me know what you like thus far, and what you don't like. Questions, concerns, predictions, anything. Have a good week, readers. Stay safe.


	15. Your Wild Girl

After checking Padmé's vitals and completing the twins' flimsiwork, the hospital staff clears out of the room with congratulations and well wishes. Ahsoka and Obi-Wan stand up from their bench and peek through the open door.

Despite the tired droop of her eyes, Padmé also looks absolutely beatific. She holds a baby in her arms, with its blond, wispy head resting against her shoulder. Anakin, his eyes wide and spooked, sits on the edge of Padmé's bed with a similar bundle cradled in his large hands.

Padmé smoothes a sweaty lock of hair from her forehead. She catches sight of Ahsoka and Obi-Wan lingering in the doorway and beckons to them with a smile. They hesitate for only a moment before they step into the room and come up to Padmé's bedside. Padmé actually reaches out to kiss Ahsoka on the cheek, and when she pulls back, she swipes a thumb down Ahsoka's chin, under the scab on her lip.

"Shall I call for a first-aid kit for this?"

"Oh no, that's healed." Somehow, most of the residual ache from the Force Lightning is chased out of Ahsoka's body, and she wonders if Padmé's Force-sensitive after all. Padmé nods and drops her hand to hold her baby.

"This is Luke. Ani's holding Leia."

"Hi Luke," Ahsoka whispers. "Hi Leia." Her voice is soft and low so as to not disturb them.

The babies are tiny, tiny creatures, all deep pink and wrinkled. There's a subtle shift in color of their hair, but apart from that, they can't be told apart from one another just yet. They're asleep for now, exhausted by just existing. Ahsoka has helped out in the creche before, but has never interacted with newborns.

"Twins?" Obi-Wan asks. Padmé nods.

"It doesn't run on my side of the family, so it must come from Ani's."

"I can sense them," Ahsoka says. Their auras flare in the Force. "They're Force-sensitive."

"The Council will be interested," Obi-Wan says.

Both Anakin and Padmé freeze at that, horror on their faces. Padmé recovers first and defiantly lifts her chin.

"They can be interested all they want, but they'll have to go through Ani and me if they want our children. And we'd probably only trust you, Obi-Wan, to teach them. You and Ahsoka."

"Me?" Ahsoka asks. She's never imagined herself with a padawan before.

"Actually, I'm surprised that Yoda isn't here already, demanding we hand them over," Anakin says. "Where is he?"

"He and Luminara went to Coruscant to save Shaak and those younglings," Obi-Wan says. Ahsoka and Anakin stare at him.

"Without us? We could've helped," Ahsoka says. Obi-Wan shakes his head.

"Anakin's made his choice. His place is here at Padmé's side. As for you, Ahsoka, you're a friend of the Jedi, but you're still not a Jedi. Not anymore. You went to Mustafar as a favor for us, and it would be wrong to ask you of anything further."

"I went to Mustafar because it was the right thing to do, not because I wanted a reward or anything like that," Ahsoka says.

"We know," Obi-Wan gently says. "And we are grateful. As it is, more than two Jedi going to Coruscant would be too suspicious, which is why I stayed behind as well. If Yoda and Luminara are successful in locating the survivors, they'll have a hard enough time getting them off Coruscant."

Anakin frowns. "No. No, that's not it. You're the contingency plan. If Yoda and Luminara fail on Coruscant, you become the Grand Master of the Jedi Order."

Obi-Wan closes his eyes and nods. "Force forbid it comes to that. I don't think I'm ready to be the Grand Master of anything."

"They'll be enough," Anakin says. "They have to be."

"Where will the Jedi bring the survivors?" Padmé asks. "Is there a plan?"

Obi-Wan blinks, surprised. "There isn't. We were too concerned with ways to get the survivors off of Coruscant."

Padmé and Anakin share a look in which they seem to have an entire conversation. When they return, Padmé says, "they can stay in our house. The master bedroom and nursery are off limits, but there are other rooms the Jedi can use, and we have plenty of bedding."

Anakin's already pulled the card key out of his pocket. "Here." He gives it to Obi-Wan. "When-when they com you, let them know."

"Thank you," Obi-Wan says, amazed. He tucks the card key into his tabard. "This is…thank you. Are you coming with us?"

"The doctors want to keep an eye on me and the babies for another day to make sure nothing's wrong," Padmé says. "Go. They'll want to sleep when they come back. They'll be hungry too."

Obi-Wan nods and he and Ahsoka leave the room.

* * *

Anakin and Padmé's house is way, way out in the countryside, and off the grid. All the electricity comes from one power generator, with another as a backup, and all the water comes from a well. It's clean, but it smells like sulphur. One would have to drive by speeder for at least thirty minutes to get to a neighbor, and the land in between the two houses is filled with thick woods.

Ahsoka looks out the window and finds nothing but darkness, something she's never really seen before. She's used to grand, urbanized planets like Coruscant, which crank out enough light pollution that it's never really night. Even when she was out on a tour of duty, she was still surrounded by troopers and other Jedi and the odd group of civilians who needed light. There was always multiple light sources at night, competing with the stars for attention.

Now, there is just the gaping expanse of the dark. Anyone else would be unnerved, but Ahsoka turns out the lights in the room and stares out the window as her eyes adjust. The grounds of Anakin and Padmé's property blend in with the shadowy trees, but above that, the night sky is alit with stars. Ahsoka's able to pick out a few constellations, but others are warped from her point of view in the galaxy. From somewhere in the trees, an owl hoots.

Midnight on Coruscant has come and gone and Riyo still hasn't commed. Ahsoka glances at her comlink now and again, hoping to see that pulsing light. She's been getting flashes of something intense these past couple hours through the Force. It's like touching a hot stove, or stepping barefoot on a tool. Every time it happens, it takes a scoop out of her chest and soon, she feels sick and empty. Ahsoka knows that whatever the Force is trying to tell her is important, but that it's also awful, and while she has her suspicions, she doesn't want to face them yet.

Riyo will com. She said she would.

Ahsoka drops the curtain over the window and leaves to explore the rest of the house. Yoda and Luminara's risky plan to sneak onto Coruscant has paid off, and they've brought surviving Jedi to the Centares Base (for that's what Anakin and Padmé's property has become).

Ahsoka passes through the darkened living room, where she finds a few younglings huddled together on the couch, asleep in a giant cuddle pile. They're almost old enough to be chosen as padawans. Ahsoka smiles despite herself at the sight and turns to leave, but the hem of her poncho is caught in a Force Grab.

"Padawan Tano?"

One of the younglings is awake. The youngling, a Tholothian girl, untangles herself from the pile and walks up to Ahsoka, hugging herself around the middle.

"Do you remember me?"

"Of course I do, Katooni." Ahsoka keeps her voice down so as to not wake the others. "I'm glad you're here."

"Me too. Though I wish we were back at the temple, and that it was never attacked." Katooni's voice has cleared since Ahsoka's seen her last.

Ahsoka sighs wistfully. "Me too."

Katooni curls her fingers in the hem of Ahsoka's poncho. "Padawan Tano?"

"Yes? You know you don't have to call me that. I'm not a part of the Order anymore."

Katooni looks up at Ahsoka as if she's grown a second head. "But you use the Force, and you're a good person."

Ahsoka gives her a bitter smile. "It's a lot more complicated than that."

Katooni wrinkles her nose. "Adults always say that things are complicated when they're not. Why shouldn't you be a Jedi?"

"I don't know if that's the place for me anymore. Let's not talk about that. How's Master Ti?"

Katooni looks down at the floor with glassy eyes. She drops Ahsoka's poncho and takes her hand instead, and she leads her through the house to a small room that serves as the medical bay.

The medical bay is as dim as the rest of the house, with only a small light in the Bacta tank to illuminate everything. Shaak Ti is submerged in the tank. Her Jedi robes have been replaced by a simple shirt and shorts, and her left lek ends in a burnt stump at her ribs. Palm prints of all sizes are scattered over the glass surface of the tank. Ahsoka and Katooni press their hands against the tank and close their eyes. They release gentle streams of the Force into the tank, helping with the healing process as much as they can.

They try not to read Shaak while they do this. Force reading someone while they're in Bacta is vastly different from reading a sleeping person. While one would get vague images of a sleeping person's dreams, the only thing one would get from a Bacta patient is unnerving oblivion.

When they're done, they watch Shaak for a couple minutes longer. There's another door on the opposite side of the room that opens out into the kitchen. Just beyond it, Obi-Wan and Luminara talk in hushed voices.

"Between Shaak and I, we're what's left of the Council," Obi-Wan says. "You've done so much for the Order, Luminara. Surely, you've earned your place on the Council too."

Ahsoka sneaks over to to the door, and Katooni follows her.

"It would be an honor, Obi-Wan, but I cannot," Luminara says. There are shadows under her eyes from lack of sleep.

"Why not?"

"I cannot, in good conscience, accept a position on the Council while I'm struggling with the Code. I am not content to let Barriss go into the Dark. I must do something, and this path has led to mistrust in the past."

Obi-Wan is silent for a long moment before he says, "we might be too desperate to be picky."

"Then we should not create a double standard. Anakin is no longer part of the Order. As he left due to the restrictions on Attachment, I believe that we should reconsider our stance on the issue."

Ahsoka's jaw drops.

Obi-Wan strokes his beard in thought. "That is…bold. Why suggest this?"

"It has come to my attention that distancing ourselves from others—the way I've distanced myself from others—has hurt instead of helped. One could try with all their might to avoid attachments, but it is inevitable. The Force did not make us as islands, It made us with mouths so that we may speak to each other. It gave us hearts so that we may empathize.

"Like you said, we are but pitiful few, and we cannot afford to be choosy. If we allowed Jedi to hold attachments, then Anakin would not have to choose between his duty to his wife over his duty to the galaxy." Luminara looks over Obi-Wan's shoulder at Ahsoka. "Ahsoka would also not have to choose."

Obi-Wan turns around to look at her, mildly surprised. His beard and hair could use a comb. Katooni gives a strangled sound and makes as if to hide behind Ahsoka, but seems to think better of it and stands her ground when she sees that Ahsoka hasn't moved.

"I'm sorry, Masters." Ahsoka bows her head in deference. Katooni copies her, blushing. "It was not my place to eavesdrop."

But Obi-Wan keeps stroking his beard. "What say you, Ahsoka?" he asks. "Would you rejoin the Jedi Order? Would it be conditional?"

Ahsoka raises her head. She's newly aware of the Jedi Holocron tucked into her belt pouch and of her silent comlink. "I'm not sure."

"Oh?" Obi-Wan says. Ahsoka opens her mouth to explain herself, but she jerks back as the Force sends a mental lance through her skull.

* * *

Electricity arcs up and down Riyo's body for the umpteenth time, making her convulse and and lash out. It was better for the first few hours, if that can be believed, because she was strapped down and couldn't hurt herself by bashing her hands and feet against anything. It was also better earlier because in-between the shocks, and while Riyo was still in the middle of being shocked, Barriss would bombard her with mind probe after mind probe, hoping to catch her off guard. Riyo would distract herself from the pain by fighting off those probes, driven by the single-minded thought to keep Barriss out.

Barriss left a while ago, summoned by Sidious to carry out some heinous task. Good riddance, but she took the table with her. Now, there is nothing in the room with Riyo except the mirror, a canteen of water, and a chamber pot.

Riyo guesses that hours have passed, but she can't be sure. The lights are always on, and every time she falls asleep, she's shocked back awake. She's shocked anyway, of course, in a random pattern so that she can't even use them to keep track of time. These electrocutions vary in length, and even in intensity, but they're still not powerful enough to knock her out.

Even when she isn't being tortured, Riyo's existence is excruciating. She can't move her arms lest jolts of pain—emanating from her missing finger and the hole in her chest—shoot through the rest of her body.

Something skitters in the corner of Riyo's vision and she gasps. A rat! Gods, there're rats in here with her. But when she takes a proper look, she finds nothing. The cell is bare. Riyo stares at the corner, still searching for the movement she swears she saw a second ago, when something else flickers on the other end of her vision. Riyo turns and finds nothing again. But she saw! And she heard! And…and…Riyo buries her head in her hands, a quiet stream of expletives dropping from her mouth. No, she can't be hallucinating. Not now. Riyo huddles into a corner of her cell, her eyes shut tight.

* * *

"P-padawan Tano!" Katooni swims into focus over Ahsoka, almost hysteric. Her hands are fisted in the front of Ahsoka's poncho. Obi-Wan and Luminara hover behind her shoulder, and the only signs of their alarm is how wide their eyes are and the spike of their feelings in the Force.

"What wrong?" Obi-Wan asks.

Ahsoka's lying on the floor of the medical bay with the taste of salt in her mouth and phantom pain in her bones. She can't answer through her tears and she puts a hand over her face in a feeble attempt to hide her distress from Katooni.

It doesn't seem to help. Katooni's fear is palpable in the Force. Obi-Wan and Luminara's concern for her can be felt too, only Katooni's feelings are so strong that they begin to worry about her as well.

"Um…." Ahsoka begs herself to stop crying, if only to stop this cascading effect, but it still takes a few moments for her to regain the slightest composure. When she's finally in control of herself, she gently pushes Katooni off of her so that she can sit up.

"What happened?" Luminara asks.

"Riyo's in trouble." Ahsoka takes Obi-Wan's hand and lets him pull her back to her feet, then, after wiping her face, starts making calls. While she does this, the Jedi stay respectfully silent, but don't leave. Ahsoka calls Riyo and gets no answer. She calls Magnus and gets no answer. Then, with her chest filled with dread, she calls Chairman Papanoida, who answers.

"Miss Tano." Papanoida's face is schooled into a neutral expression.

"Have you heard from Riyo?" Ahsoka asks. Her voice breaks, and she clears her throat. Papanoida's stony facade breaks and he looks at her with the utmost pity.

"I have not, and I cannot inquire on your behalf."

"Why not?"

"The Emperor is a cunning man, he has removed Miss Chuchi from her post as the Pantoran Senator and replaced her with my daughter, Chi Eekway."

"He's using her as a hostage," Ahsoka says.

"My hands are tied. I can tell you that no one else has seen, or heard from, Miss Chuchi since she left her office yesterday."

"Thank you, Chairman."

"I wish you luck, Miss Tano," the Chairman says, "but please, for both our sakes, do not call again."

His hologram flickers out. Ahsoka lowers her arm, scowling.

"I should have taken her with me when I left," she whispers. "Or picked her up after I was done on Mustafar. I should've…I'm wasting time thinking." Ahsoka tears out of the medical bay with the three Jedi on her heels.

"Where are you going?" Obi-Wan asks, his eyes wide.

"Riyo needs me! I'm going to do something about it." Ahsoka ducks under Obi-Wan's arm so that she can get to the front door. "R7? Where are you?"

The red and white droid rolls out of the living room with R2, bleeping.

"Let's go." Ahsoka opens the door and steps out into the cool night air. Her starfighter's parked somewhere in the gloom, but with her vision, she won't have a problem finding it.

"Ahsoka, wait!" Obi-Wan says as he follows her out. Their conversation is loud and has roused the rest of the house. While he and Luminara pause in the dirt road leading to the house, Katooni and another youngling linger in the open doorway, watching.

"It's a trap! You don't need the Force to sense that," Obi-Wan says.

"I sense it too, but that's not gonna stop me," Ahsoka says.

"We need you! The galaxy needs you."

"Riyo needs me too. I won't abandon her." Ahsoka slides into the cockpit and waits for R7 to drop into the astromech socket before she begins the takeoff sequence. "Don't worry, Masters, I've got a plan!" And it's going to work, Force help her. Ahsoka pulls the canopy closed and then pulls on the controls to fly the ship into space.

"Do you remember where the hyperdrive ring is?" Ahsoka asks.

R7 asks her what the hell they're doing.

"We're gonna kick some ass." Ahsoka's comlink lights up and she lets go of the controls. "I gotta take this. You can hook us up, can't you?"

R7 whistles that yeah, he sure can. Ahsoka takes the call and Anakin's tired hologram appears.

"Hey, Skyguy."

"Snips, Obi-Wan called and told me you just took off. Why'd you leave?"

"Riyo's been arrested and they're torturing her."

Anakin pauses, his eyes wide. "How do you know?"

"I felt it through the Force. I have to do something."

"I'd approve, because I'd do the same thing if it were Padmé in trouble, but I sense a trap."

"I do too. That's why I'm gonna call someone to help me."

"Ventress?" Anakin's lip curls.

"I'd ask you, but Padmé needs you right now, so she's it. If I'm gonna rescue Riyo, I need to find out where she is first. Asajj is gonna help me get that info."

Anakin frowns, but doesn't comment on that further. "Once you get this information, regroup with us. Even if the others don't help, I'll come with you to rescue Riyo."

Ahsoka smiles. "Thanks, Master."

"Ani, come back." Padme's voice sounds in the background. Anakin waves goodbye, then ends the call.

The starfighter's cleared the Centares atmosphere, and R7's in the middle of lining up the ship with the hyperdrive ring. Ahsoka makes another call and a couple rings in, Asajj picks up. Her hair's almost long enough to obscure her scalp tattoos.

"Ahsoka."

"Asajj."

"What do you want?"

"Riyo's missing."

"So I heard. My condolences."

Ahsoka bares her teeth. "Condolences, nothing. I'm gonna get her back."

"Oh?"

"I need to find out where she's being held, and I need your help to do it."

"Interesting. My new handler told me that I was not to go after Chuchi."

"Well, I'm asking you to help me go after her now. Are you in or out?"

"Hmm." Asajj rubs a hand over her scalp while she thinks it over, ruffling her short hair and messing it up even further. "Tell me the plan."

Ahsoka tells her the plan. Asajj shakes her head.

"We're not enough. Even with that insipid droid of yours."

"We have to be enough. The Jedi won't help."

"Calm down, I know someone. She won't come cheap though. You'll have to make this job worthwhile for her."

Ahsoka stares. "I don't have enough credits for that."

"It doesn't have to be credits."

"Uh hmm. It's an Imperial base, full of weapons and ships. We can loot it?"

"That'll do. Do you need me to pick you up?"

"I have a ship now, but it can't seat three."

"Ugh. I'm sending you my coordinates. Don't keep me waiting long."

Ahsoka rolls her eyes and ends the call.

* * *

The Wheel isn't a planet, it's a sprawling space station out in the Middle Rim of the galaxy. It's near enough to the Core Systems to receive civilized comforts, but far enough to escape any meaningful influence from them at the same time. The result is a lawless and dangerous patch of space that revels in easy access to gambling, drugs, alcohol, and sex. It's kind of like the Trickster's Ball back on Pantora, only everyone has blasters and knives, and no one dresses in black tie.

Ahsoka and R7 make their way through a dimly-lit hookah lounge, looking for Asajj. The air is filled with sweet smoke, and it tickles Ahsoka's nose and wafts around her. There's an open area in the front that's been split into sections by black couches. A couple of these areas are empty, but two are taken up by a trio of rough men and a group of women respectively. There are half-empty bottles of liquor on the tables between them, and one of the men holds up a data pad to record his friend blowing smoke rings into the air.

Ahsoka walks past them into a corridor that leads to private rooms. Most of them are closed off, but Asajj told her which room she'd be in, and when she reaches the right door, she presses in the correct code and opens it.

Inside the room is a hookah bong, a coffee table, and a black chesterfield sofa and loveseat set. On the sofa is Asajj with smoke billowing out of her mouth, and lying on the sofa and using Asajj's lap like a pillow is a Pantoran woman around Asajj's age. She looks mildly up at Ahsoka with passing interest.

"Asajj?" Ahsoka asks. Asajj passes the hookah hose to her companion and uses the Force to levitate an old fashioned whiskey glass from the coffee table to her hand.

"Ahsoka. Come in. Lassa, this is Ahsoka Tano, our mysterious benefactor. Ahsoka, this is Captain Lassa Rhayme."

The Pantoran woman blows smoke out her mouth and sits up. Her light purple hair is gathered into a loose braid and her skin is smooth and unmarked. The only tattoos she has are the ones on the backs of her hands.

"Hi," she says. Her voice doesn't carry any hint of a Pantoran accent.

"Hi," Ahsoka says back. She bites back a question about the lack of Lassa's tattoos and sits down on the loveseat across from them. "Captain, huh? Are you in the navy?"

Lassa gives a dark chuckle. "I'm a pirate, honey."

Ahsoka stares. "Like Hondo?"

Lassa laughs. "No, not like him. My crew and I are supposed to stay here for a week, but I'm bored, so here I am. Asajj tells me you'll make it worth my while."

"Imperial bases are full of weapons and equipment. Anything that isn't nailed down is probably worth a lot of credits."

"I'll be the judge of that." Lassa produces a data pad and places it on the coffee table. "Draw me a map of the base."

For the next fifteen minutes, Lassa grills Ahsoka on what she remembers about the base. The layout, which equipment is stored where and how much of each, the manpower, security holocams, lights, non-sentient creatures, anything and everything about this base is discussed. Ahsoka quickly runs out of information to tell, but R7 still knows everything, and he takes over for Ahsoka until Lassa's satisfied.

"What's your plan?" Lassa asks. Ahsoka, still frazzled from the interrogation, tells her the plan.

"That's a terrible plan," Lassa says.

"It's enough of a plan," Asajj says. Lassa swats her knee.

"Shut up, you just wanna kill people." She turns back to Ahsoka. "You want information and nothing else."

"Yes."

"And I want loot. Okay. Okay." Lassa brushes a few wisps of hair out of her face as she thinks. "Okay, I have a plan."

Lassa tells them the new plan; it's more thorough and it even has a couple contingencies in place.

"Your ship, or mine?" Lassa asks Asajj, her eyebrow cocked. Asajj frowns.

"Not in front of the kid."

"Yours then," Lassa says. She picks up the second glass and throws back the rest of her shot. "Mmm. I left my blasters with the bartender."

Lassa leaves the room, taking her glass with her. Ahsoka watches the older woman leave, then turns to to Asajj.

"So."

"So," Asajj says tightly, as if daring Ahsoka to say something. Like that's going to stop her.

"You guys are cute."

Asajj sneers. "Shut up."

"A Force-sensitive and a Pantoran, huh? That sounds familiar."

"Maybe I wanted to see what all the fuss was about."

"Well, whatever you've learned, it seems to have helped. You're glowing," Ahsoka continues, unashamed. This only seems to annoy Asajj further, but before she can reply, Lassa opens the door.

"Come on, let's go!" Lassa, newly armed, shrugs on a dark pea coat that reaches down to her knees. Ahsoka catches a glimpse of no less than three blasters strapped to her hips and to a gear baldric that crosses her chest. There's also a rapier on her left hip and a knife sheathed in her boot.

"But they just refreshed the coals!" Asajj says.

"My people are in danger!"

Asajj laughs. "You don't care about your people."

Lassa wrinkles her nose. "That's true. I just want to pillage."

"Pirate."

"Assassin."

Ahsoka sighs. "I need to make different friends."

* * *

Ahsoka, R7, Asajj, and Lassa get to Felucia after the sun has set, just as all the plants wake up and glow throughout the night. Asajj lands the Banshee down outside of the base's sensors, within a thick copse of blue trees, and R7 lands the starfighter beside it. They all disembark. Ahsoka and Asajj immediately disappear into the flora, leaving Lassa on the ramp of the Banshee.

"Trickster's Tongue," Lassa mutters under her breath. "How the hell are you two doing that?"

"Togruta," Ahsoka whispers from up within a tree.

"Assassin." Asajj pops her helmeted head out from behind a bush and beckons to Lassa. "Get in here. I can't believe you; call yourself a pirate and you can't sneak."

"Shut up, I can sneak just fine." Lassa joins Asajj behind the bush and ducks out of sight.

"Good luck, buddy!" Ahsoka gives R7 a thumbs up before she disappears again. R7 beeps, then rolls down the clearest path he can chart in order to reach the front gates of the base, which is guarded by a few clone troopers. None of the troopers take a second look at the droid, and he rolls into the base without any trouble.

Ahsoka leaps through the jungle, lithe and graceful and aided by the Force. Her face marks and the stripes of her montrals and lekku camouflage her perfectly. The jungle comes alive around her, pulsing with the living Force. It smells like soil and sweet flowers and the musk of animals who have come and gone, some dangerous and others small enough for Ahsoka to catch if she wanted. Her montrals pick up every little sound, from the rustling of the leaves, to the scurrying of the smaller creatures as they run through the undergrowth.

She's loathe to admit it, but she can't see, hear, or sense where Asajj is, and only knows where she might be by the sounds Lassa makes as she clumsily keeps up with her. There's a gap between the tree-line and the high duracrete wall that surrounds the base. Asajj and Ahsoka use the Force to turn away any security holocams, then run to the wall, flattening themselves against it. There are troopers on patrol, and Asajj lifts her hands and uses the Force to knock them out. They go limp so quickly that Ahsoka whirls on Asajj, indignant.

"What did you do?" she whispers.

"I didn't kill them, just gave them small concussions," Asajj whispers back. "You summon their brains in their skulls a little bit." She renders another guard unconscious with a twitch of a finger. "Like that."

"Stop talking!" Lassa whispers. "Go!"

Ahsoka and Asajj Force Jump onto the parapet and crouch low to hide in the shadows. They turn more cameras away, and while Asajj hides the unconscious troopers, Ahsoka uses mind tricks on two more troopers below, making them think that they've all forgotten to do something important that they have to take care of now. They practically run into the base, leaving several starfighters and a couple freighters at their mercy. Asajj uses the Force to lift Lassa up on to the walkway, and at the sight of so many ships, Lassa coos.

"Oh look at them all! They're so pretty."

"Yes, yes, shiny," Asajj says, impatient. "Which one?"

"That one." Lassa points to one of the ships; a B-7 light freighter. The three women sneak over, turning security holocams aside and keeping a sharp lookout for troopers. Lassa presses small, explosive pucks to the hulls of the other ships they pass by, and when they get to the chosen ship, Lassa disappears into it for a few seconds before she comes back out.

"It's perfect, but I'll need to hotwire it. Do you two remember my list?"

"Yes," Ahsoka and Asajj chorus.

"Good. Get going."

Ahsoka and Asajj depart in different directions, making sure to stick to the shadows.

In another part of the base, R7 rolls into the command center, unnoticed by the officers and troopers manning the controls. He plugs in and begins rifling through the Imperial data base, looking for any information regarding Riyo Chuchi.

"Droid!" one of the officers, a pasty human man in a crisp, gray uniform, points at R7. "What are you doing?"

R7 beeps that he's there for a security system audit.

"I was not notified of an audit."

In a series of whistles and clicks, R7 says that audits are supposed to be a surprise, idiot, that's why they're audits. And it's a good thing he came too, because their cybersecurity is atrocious.

"Why!" The officer flounders for a moment and the troopers around him struggle to keep straight faces. "You will show some respect! What is your authorization code?"

R7 gives him a code. The officer snaps his fingers at a trooper, who runs it through their system.

"Is this trash can an auditor or not?" the officer asks.

"It's an old code, sir, but it checks out."

"How old?"

"About ten days, sir."

The officer turns back to R7, fuming. "You're lying! Get him!"

R7 unplugs from the port and rolls out of the command center amidst heavy blaster fire, screaming.

Ahsoka's halfway back to the ship with a hover dolly laden with crates when the alarm sounds throughout the base.

"Security breach," an electronic voice says through the PA system. "Security breach. Be on the lookout for a red R7-A7 astromech droid."

"R7!" Ahsoka whispers. "What did you do?" She drops all pretense of sneaking around and runs back to the ship, pushing the dolly before her. The cargo hold already has tanks of fuel, shield generators, several speeder bikes, and other things. Force, Asajj moves fast. Ahsoka will just have to be impressed later, however.

"Time's up!" Ahsoka shouts as she Force Pushes the entire dolly onto the ship. Lassa's mouth moves silently as she takes stock of the crates and does sums in her head. Asajj stands on the top of the loading ramp, her hands on her lightsabers.

"We have to find R7," Ahsoka says. Lassa nods.

"Go!" Lassa says. "You too, babe. That droid'll need all the help he can get."

Asajj's face is hidden by her helmet, but her aura reeks of malice. She and Ahsoka take off into the base, smashing into troopers and rendering them unconscious with the Force as they run down a hallway.

"R7!" Ahsoka shouts into her comlink. "Where are you?"

R7 tells her that he's shut himself in a janitor's closet near the command room. Ahsoka makes a left and Force Pushes an entire crowd of troopers off of their feet. They hit the floor, groaning. Asajj follows her, listening in on the call while she knocks the troopers out.

"Did he get the information?"

"Did you get Riyo's location?" Ahsoka asks.

R7 tells her that yeah, duh, and then some. Save him and he'll tell.

"Sit tight, R7, we're coming for you." Ahsoka ends the call and raises her hand to Force deflect a grenade back at its thrower. The troopers shout and try to run, but the grenade goes off, making the hallway cave in behind them.

"There goes our exit," Asajj says. "What now?"

"This way!" Ahsoka parts a crowd of troopers with the Force, throwing them head-first into the walls. Most of them slide down, unconscious, but a couple of them stagger back upright. Ahsoka simply runs past them and turns a corner. She slides to a stop and Asajj almost bumps into her.

A group of soldiers and officers are gathered around an unmarked door. The nearest ones to the door pound on it with the butt of their blaster rifles while one of the troopers fiddles with the door pad.

"I want that door open!" the officer screams. "Now!"

"Hey," one of the troopers points at Ahsoka and Asajj. "You're not authorized to be here!"

"They must be with the droid," the officer says. "Open fire!"

PEW PEW.

Ahsoka and Asajj activate their lightsabers and deflect the red blaster bolts that come their way.

"Jedi?!" The officer shouts again. He's so wound up that Ahsoka expects him to foam at the mouth any second now. Several troopers come up behind the two women, blocking the way they came. "Kill them!"

Asajj turns around to block blaster bolts coming from behind them, so she and Ahsoka fight back to back.

"We're surrounded." Asajj presses a button on her comlink and calmly reflects blaster bolts back at the troopers, hitting them in their heads and chest plates. "Lassa."

"What's up, love?"

"Ahsoka and I are pinned down. Blow the bombs."

"Sorry, what? I couldn't hear you."

"Please," Asajj says with clenched teeth. Ahsoka looks back at her, her mouth open.

"You got it."

BOOM. The floor rocks beneath them as Lassa blows up most of the ships.

"Where are you guys? I'll come get you."

"Right outside the command center!" Ahsoka shouts. She Force Pushes through all the troopers and officers to clear a path to the janitor's closet. When they get there, Asajj keeps watch as Ahsoka raps her knuckles against the door.

"R7? Come on out, buddy."

You're late, R7 beeps, but he opens the door and rolls out. On one end of the hallway, the officers and troopers that Ahsoka knocked down are recovering quickly. In a couple seconds, they'll come at them again. The other end of the hallway is filled with charging troopers, kept at bay only by Asajj's reflected blaster bolts.

Kark. R7's dome whirls around and he makes as if to roll back into the closet, but Ahsoka closes the door.

"Any ideas?" Asajj shouts. "Lassa can't extract us through the damn roof!"

"Then shoot the roof out!" Ahsoka shouts. "Lassa, did you hear me?"

"Sure did." Lassa's voice comes from Asajj's comlink. "Here goes."

BOOM. Everyone flinches and ducks when the command center is blown to smithereens. Shrapnel and dust spill out through the open door and into the hallway and Asajj and Ahsoka use the Force to deflect the worst of it away.

R7's boosters pop out from his leg struts and he rockets through the hallway and into the trashed command center, screaming. Asajj, who has filters in her helmet, simply follows him into the smoke, but Ahsoka must bury her nose in her elbow before she runs after them.

The command center's been reduced to rubble. Heavy chunks of duracrete and rebar have crushed most of the control panels, plunging the entire room in darkness. R7's booster fire cuts through the gloom as he flies out through the giant hole in the roof, and Ahsoka follows him out with a Force Jump.

Out of the frying pan and…wow look, into an identical frying pan. The roof is crowded with troopers, all firing at the tail end of the stolen freighter, which has an open loading hatch. The shields hold for now, but it's only a matter of time before the troopers bring out the anti-aircraft blasters.

When the troopers notice the three escapees, they start shooting at them too. Ahsoka and Asajj purposely draw their fire from R7 by twirling their lightsabers. There are so many troopers shooting at them that the two women barely keep up, even with all of their lightsabers activated.

"Look at us! Ooh, shiny!" Asajj taunts as she deflects blaster bolts. "Come get us, boys."

"You don't need to do that, they're already shooting at us!" Ahsoka shouts. She wonders if Asajj has a death wish.

"The droid's onboard!" Lassa says through the comlink. "Get on so we can karking go!"

Together, Ahsoka and Asajj do a massive Force Push that knocks all the troopers over, then Force Jump into the open hatch of the freighter. Ahsoka lands on the ramp and takes a few steps into the ship from the momentum. Asajj slams a palm on the control panel to close the hatch.

"We're on!" Asajj shouts. "Go!"

Lassa whoops and flies the ship out of the base. The ship rocks from the lingering volleys of blaster bolts, but it soon stops, and the ship flies on in peace. Ahsoka deactivates her lightsabers and clips them back to her belt. She turns to R7.

"Let's see it."

R7 whistles and projects a hologram of the entire map of the galaxy. It zooms in on the Core systems, then switches to a globe of Coruscant, then zooms in on sections of the planet's surface until it centers on the Rep-uh-Imperial Judiciary Central Detention Center.

BWOP BWOP. The hologram cuts to Riyo's prison file.

"Maximum Security?" Ahsoka reads. "Solitary Confinement? But she's harmless!"

"It's not for her, it's for you," Asajj says. Now that they're safe, she lifts the visor of her helmet. "They know you're coming."

"Tell me something I don't know," Ahsoka says.

"She's staying at the pleasure of this 'Darth Kayip.' That must be Offee's new name." Asajj points to the name in the hologram.

Ahsoka leans back as if Asajj punched her in the face. "No way!"

"Look, it's right here."

"She wouldn't do that to Riyo!"

"She has! She's doing it right now."

Ahsoka closes her eyes tight and clenches her fists. R7 cuts the hologram and rolls away, murmuring. The loot begins to rattle ominously.

"I don't understand. Riyo's never done anything to her!"

"Sith rarely need an excuse to harm others, but they'll gladly take any excuse to be more vicious than necessary," Asajj says. She warily eyes the shaking things around her. "Ahsoka."

"What?" Amazing how one word could be laced by so much venom.

"Tearing this ship apart won't help Chuchi."

"Yeah, but it would make me feel better."

Asajj's eyes narrow and she slaps Ahsoka across the face. "Will you get a grip?"

The rattling stops, and Ahsoka puts a hand over her stinging cheek.

"Better?" Asajj asks.

Ahsoka gives Asajj a look of utter disbelief. Asajj shrugs.

"Consoling people is not my thing."

"I noticed." Ahsoka rubs her cheek. She sighs. "Barriss is Sith. She wanted to be Sith, so the least I can do is treat her like a Sith."

"We're here," Lassa says over the PA system. "Pick up your ships."

All three ships are flown into space, and after they dock with one another, they jump into hyperspace. Ahsoka makes her way through the Banshee and meets with Asajj and Lassa in the kitchen, which is run down and in need of a good scrubbing. When she sees her, Lassa raises a shot glass to her.

"We're about to make so many credits. It's gonna take me some time, but I'll get your share to you."

"Thank you, Lassa," Ahsoka says. "I know we just got done with a job, but…I'd like to discuss the next one. It needs to be done as soon as possible."

"As single-minded as her master," Asajj mutters under her breath. She downs a shot and set the glass aside. "Very well, what is it?"

"We're going to break into the Imperial Prison on Coruscant."

Asajj doesn't even blink at that, but Lassa nods.

"Yeah, no. I'm not doing that," Lassa says. "I feel for you, kiddo. I do, but if I break into that prison with you, I invite the Empire to declare war on me and mine, and I'm not about to make a decision like that without the consent of my crew."

"Bantha poodoo. You could have said the same thing for this gig," Asajj says.

"It's Coruscant! Pirates avoid core worlds on principle. They're too well-guarded."

"That's fair," Ahsoka says. She's disappointed, as Lassa would have been great help, but there's nothing she can really do about it.

"I wish you luck," Lassa says and she turns to Asajj. "What about you?"

Asajj strokes down her chin tattoos, lost in thought. "Offee's the one torturing Chuchi. If we find one of them, we'll find the other."

"Babe." Lassa stares at her in disbelief. "It's suicide."

"So was Malachor. Do you remember what I told you about Darth Maul?"

"What about him?"

"This girl punted him into space." Asajj gestures to Ahsoka. "Whatever she has planned, I want to see it."

"You're going," Lassa says.

"I'm going," Asajj says. The two of them stare at each other so intently that Ahsoka feels like she's intruding on something.

"Kark!" Lassa mutters under her breath. "Fine. I'm coming too."

Asajj's face splits into an insufferable grin and Lassa swats her shoulder, but that only widens it. That smile is the single most unnerving thing that Ahsoka's ever seen. She's pretty sure that every time Asajj smiles like that, a kitten is drowned.

"I gotta move that loot though," Lassa says. "Where're we headed?"

"Centares," Ahsoka says. Lassa claps her hands.

"Perfect!" Lassa picks up the bottle of whiskey and her glass and moves to the lounge. Unwilling to let the whiskey leave, Asajj follows her with her own glass. Ahsoka rolls her eyes and goes into the lounge after them. The two older women sit close together on one side of the curved booth, and Ahsoka sits down on the other.

"It's a trap, you know that, right?" Asajj asks. She crosses her long legs and drapes an arm over the back of the booth seat around Lassa's shoulders. "They'll be waiting for you."

"I know," Ahsoka says. "That's why I can't go alone. I need backup and I need a pilot. I was going to go in there with just R7 if I had to."

From the cockpit, R7 can be heard chattering about how Ahsoka's karking nuts.

"Even including me, and your droid, we're not enough for that," Lassa says. Her gold eyes flicker up as she does the calculations in her head. "There needs to be a distraction to split their forces in two. We need at least double our number."

"How about at least two Jedi?" Ahsoka asks. "Maybe three?"

"Jedi?" Lassa asks at the same time Asajj flatly says, "no."

"I know you're talking about Kenobi and Skywalker," Asajj says. "We do not work well together."

Ahsoka rolls her eyes. "I used to think that you and I wouldn't work well together, but here we are! Things change."

"Ugh. Fine. If it means I get a shot at that Offee girl, then I'll put up with those jokers," Asajj says.

"Yes!" Ahsoka pumps her fist, then frowns. "Now I have to convince them to come."

* * *

Note Bene: I can't believe Lassa Rhayme and Asajj are literally a pirate/ninja pairing. And honestly, I'm glad that there's other characters that Ahsoka can hang out with to distract her from angst. It gives me an excuse to inject some needed humor.

Riyo is her mind. If you asked her what she's got going for her, that would be her first response. And now I'm taking that away from her. I have no excuse.

Thank you all so much for sticking with this story and for leaving feedback! Whenever I get a notification, it truly makes my day. You guys are pretty rad.


	16. Just a Moment, a Yellow Sky

Riyo feels absolutely filthy. Her skin and her hair feel greasy and she's pretty sure her clothes are starting to stink. Pretty sure, and not totally sure, because she can't trust her senses anymore. Shadows flicker on the edges of her vision. The walls whisper nonsensical garbage and even her body's betraying her; her muscles twitch now and then, telling her that she is tired. So very tired. Even though she's starving, it might be a good thing that she isn't given any food, because she doesn't think she can keep anything down. There must be something in the water making her sick.

Barriss did say that she wanted to keep her alive, but Sith lie all the time, right? Is it paranoia if they're really out to get her?

When Riyo's not getting electrocuted, she thumbs the silka beads in her left hand and mutters prayers to the Gods. All the Gods, any of the Gods. Any of Them that could be listening. It keeps her awake, and it keeps her…it keeps her focused. Focused enough. Riyo keeps losing track of where she is in the prayers. She loses track of who she's praying to. All she knows is that there's this wall around her mind that must not come down. Riyo checks and rechecks and checks again, testing the strength of the barrier, the wholeness.

At least there's one thing in her head that isn't crumbling apart.

The door slides open and Barriss steps into the room. Something resembling concern flickers in Barriss's eyes, but it's gone before Riyo can get a better look, and she dismisses it as another hallucination. She slides the bracelet back onto her wrist.

"Are you ready to talk?" Barriss asks.

"Go to hell," Riyo says, her consonants slurred. She's lost most of her voice from screaming. "You are wasting everyone's time with this. My time, his time," here, Riyo points to a hidden trooper behind the two-way mirror with her middle finger, as her pointer is gone, "and your time." She points at Barriss.

Barriss scowls. "Charming."

"Just for you." Riyo drops her hand, too exhausted to keep it up. "You didn't come here to gloat, you don't do gloating. What do you want?"

"Still perceptive, I see," Barriss says. "The Emperor has received word of the formation of an alliance whose sole purpose is to restore the Republic. What do you know of it?"

Riyo checks her mental shields again and gestures around her cell. "I don't get the Holonet in here. You might want to try asking a better connected individual."

Barriss clenches her fist and a crushing pressure clamps down around Riyo's blaster wound.

"Aargh!" Riyo recoils and slides down onto the floor. Her chest feels as if on fire, and she can feel blood seeping out of her to soak the Bacta patch.

"I asked you a question."

"And I gave you an answer!" Riyo half-sobs from her place on the floor. "I don't know."

"That's a lie!" Barriss sends mind probe after mind probe at Riyo, battering at her shields, but Riyo holds firm. When Barriss finally lets up, Riyo opens her eyes to find the room spinning.

"Ugh." She wipes her face and her hand comes way with blood. Her nose is bleeding.

"Perhaps you'd be more cooperative if you had company? Do you have family, Senator?"

Riyo giggles despite the pain. "My blood relatives would sooner disown me than offer me aid. I'm not joking, and it's not conjecture either. They've done it before."

Barriss's nose wrinkles.

"You're not surprised. What do you know?" Riyo asks.

"As soon as I arrested you, your relatives vanished. Every single one."

"Hah! Of course they did."

Barriss glares down at her. "You know something about these rebels, and I'm not leaving here until you tell me everything. Trooper!"

Riyo shrieks as the shock collar electrocutes her.

* * *

In the space just outside Centares, Ahsoka and R7 detach their starfighter from the other two ships and fly down to Anakin and Padmé's house without any trouble. They land amidst the morning light. As soon as Ahsoka disembarks and plants her feet in the dewy grass, Katooni slams into her and gives her a tight hug.

"Padawan Tano, you came back!"

"Of course I came back!" Ahsoka steps back to keep herself from falling over, and returns the hug. There's a land speeder that wasn't here when she left. "Who else is here?"

"Master Skywalker and Senator Amidala!" Katooni takes Ahsoka's hand and pulls her towards the house. "They have babies! And Master Yoda's here too."

"Oh! Then I should say hello. Hey!"

In a wide space between the speeders, the rest of the younglings play. There are around five of them, all different ages. A couple of them don't even have lightsabers yet. At the sound of Ahsoka's shout, they stop and look.

"Are you throwing rocks?" Ahsoka asks. Force, but they could really hurt themselves doing that. Or they could damage the speeders and ships.

Two of the younglings hide their hands behind their backs. Another one turns around and tosses their rock away like Ahsoka won't see them doing it.

"No," they say.

Katooni sighs, looking just as exasperated as Ahsoka feels. "They do this all the time."

"Don't throw rocks!" Ahsoka says. "Try to throw each other!"

Katooni whirls around and stares at Ahsoka in terror, but the younglings gaze up at Ahsoka as if she's offered them the entire galaxy.

"Like tug of war, okay?" Ahsoka continues. "But with pushing instead of pulling."

"You're gonna kill them!" Katooni says. Ahsoka grins and pulls Katooni to the house by the hand.

"They'll be fine. Don't worry about it."

The house is drastically different from when she left it. When Padmé came back, she brought her handmaids with her. Two of them are busy in the kitchen while the other one is in the nursery, trying to get the babies settled into their mid-morning nap.

The Jedi Council has taken over the living room. Yoda is perched in a worn armchair near the fireplace. He's joined by Obi-Wan, Luminara, and even Shaak Ti, released from the Bacta Tank.

Shaak looks as if she's about to fall asleep. Tender, blue skin has formed over the stump of her left lek, and she leans a cane against her right knee. On the coffee table are holograms of other Jedi, people Ahsoka doesn't recognize. They must be the other Jedi in hiding elsewhere in the galaxy.

"If we allow Attachment, then we are asking Jedi to eventually choose between their significant others and the galaxy!" says one of the holograms, a human man with white hair and facial scars. "Putting people in that moral quandary is irresponsible and cruel!"

"The Jedi who are old enough to consent to legitimate romantic attachments do not need to be coddled like younglings," Luminara says. "They would be well aware of the risks involved in such a relationship."

"They've been talking for hours," Katooni whispers. "It's so boring."

"When you grow up, there's a lot of talking," Ahsoka whispers back. She sits down on a couple cushions just around the corner, but still peeks in on the meeting. Katooni wrinkles her nose, but sits down on the cushions next to her.

"You talk as if the Jedi Council has never made a wrong choice," Obi-Wan says. "We once collectively chose to serve the Republic over the Force and the entire Order has been poorer for it since."

"Master Kina Ha," Yoda regards the second hologram. "Unattached to the Order, you are. To the Code instead, you cling. What do you think of all this?"

Ahsoka's never heard of any Master Ha before, let alone any Jedi Master who's unattached from the Order. Kina is a Kaminoan, tall and ethereally graceful.

"Everyone thinks that the Jedi Code is a complicated set of rules," Kina says. She sounds almost as old as Yoda. "They think that there's enough rules to fill an entire data card, and that these rules are set in stone. This is not true. Master Ti, you know the Code, don't you?"

The scarred human master bristles. "We're not younglings in a classroom, Master Ha!"

"You'll always be younglings to me, Master Kota," Kina says. "Master Ti, if you please?"

Shaak lazily closes her eyes. "There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. There is no death, there is the Force."

Many of the other masters join in as Shaak recites—even Ahsoka's lips move in silent syncing—and by the time she reaches the end of the Code, it's as if she's been leading them all in prayer.

"Poetry," Kina says. "Such a short thing, the Code is. It's easy to remember that way, and it's difficult to imagine it existing as anything else. But you, Master Yoda, know the previous version as well as I do."

Yoda nods. "Emotion, yet peace. Ignorance, yet knowledge. Passion, yet serenity. Chaos, yet harmony. Death, yet the Force."

"And what a difference a few words make," Kina says. "All of these opposing forces are no longer in conflict, and instead are meant to exist together. You cannot banish one half and keep the other. You can only strive for balance."

"Where does that leave Attachment, Master Ha?" Obi-Wan asks.

"According to the old Jedi Code, there is a time and place for everything. Passion and emotion have their place beside peace and serenity and thus Attachment is permissible."

"What?" Kota yells, incredulous. Small spikes of confusion and astonishment pulse out in the Force from the Council Members. Ahsoka gasps and claps a hand over her mouth. Katooni says nothing, long since asleep with her head on Ahsoka's shoulder. Poor girl, she must have not been getting enough sleep lately.

"Of course, as the reformed Council, you must all agree to allow it," Kina says. "Do as you will. I've said my piece, and so am content. May the Force be with you all."

When Kina's hologram cuts out, it leaves behind an uneasy Council. Kota is the first one to find his tongue.

"Why are we discussing allowing Attachment in the first place? So we can keep from kicking out Skywalker? Disgraceful."

"Anakin Skywalker is a Jedi Knight!" Obi-Wan says.

"Skywalker is a deserter."

"Can we please not bad-mouth the person who has graciously let us hide in his home?" Shaak asks. "We can get through this discussion without throwing names, can't we?"

"Indeed," Obi-Wan says.

"Very well. If I may present my opinion, Masters?" Kota asks. Everyone else falls silent to listen. "In a very short week, the Order has been all but eradicated. We have lost most of our number, the support of the Republic, and even our temple lies in ruins. We have even failed in our goal to protect the galaxy.

"All we have left are our values, the values that have propelled this Order through hundreds of years and have guided us through the most dire of conflicts. These values serve as the only constant and comfort left to the remaining Jedi scattered across the galaxy. If we change them now, it would strip the last vestiges of stability that we have left!

"If the Order is to survive these trying times, then we must be steady in our beliefs. This is not the time for a debate about our doctrine. If we keep our code, then we keep our identity intact with it, and the Order will survive."

A shadow falls over Ahsoka and Katooni, and Ahsoka looks up to see Anakin.

"Snips," Anakin whispers.

"Skyguy," Ahsoka whispers back. Anakin beckons to her and she gently places Katooni on the cushions so that she can follow him into the master bedroom. It's bedecked in decidedly Naboo fashion, all sea greens and blues matched with warm, gilded metals. Padmé rises from the vanity to greet her with open arms.

"Ahsoka! Oh, you're safe." Padmé envelops her in a tight hug and when she pulls back, she leaves the faint scent of millaflower. "I've heard about Riyo. How is she faring? How are you holding up?"

"Um," but that's all Ahsoka is able to say. Padmé clicks her tongue and pulls her in for another hug.

"We'll get her back, Snips," Anakin says.

"I feel her in the back of my head. She's in so much pain," Ahsoka says. She pulls away and clears her throat. "I have a plan, but I need help."

"Well, I don't know about the Council, but I'll help," Anakin says.

"Thanks. The Council sounds like it's too busy debating Attachment to help."

"Yeah, because of me."

"And me," Padmé says. "The both of us. Ani and I were discussing it before you came back."

Padmé takes Ahsoka's hands and leads the way to a love-seat couch set in the corner. Anakin takes the wide, matching ottoman across from them.

"The Council may be debating Attachment, but they're not going to give it the green light," Anakin says. "The Council's too conservative for that."

"They have other things to worry about than to have to redefine what a Jedi can and can't do," Padmé says. "However, the Jedi are still desperate for more members, especially members who have already received formal training. They'll invite Ani back into the Order, and they'll invite you too, Ahsoka."

Ahsoka hesitates. "But that means…if you say yes, then that means you'll have to…."

"Yeah," Anakin says. "It isn't a decision I haven't already made though. Padmé and I talked it over, and we're just as confident as we were back then."

"We wanted to keep you in the loop, and to warn you so that you'd have time to think it over too," Padmé says. "We also wanted to let you know that we are very proud of you, and will be proud of you no matter what you choose."

Ahsoka doesn't know why, but that somehow makes things better. "Thanks, Padmé."

There's a knock on the door, before it opens to reveal Katooni, who rubs sleep from her eyes.

"The Council wants to talk to you."

She doesn't mention a specific name, but Ahsoka and Anakin both get up at the same time anyway. Katooni disappears elsewhere into the house, yawning, and Padmé stays behind in the bedroom, leaving Ahsoka and Anakin to walk into the living room together. They don't go into the middle of the circle, because there's no room for the two of them and the caf table.

"Hello, everyone," Anakin says. Yoda nods and turns to him first. He raises a claw, and Anakin lets down his mental shields.

"Hmm…Full of fear, you were, when you were first presented to us. Hid it skillfully throughout the years, you have. Diminished greatly, it has. Explain this."

Anakin shrugs. "Therapy."

The Council stares.

"Therapy?" Yoda asks, weakly.

"Therapy," Anakin says again. "It was Padmé's idea. I mean, don't get me wrong, I just started and it's an ongoing process and it's a lot of work, but it helps."

Ahsoka silently thanks the Force for Padmé Amidala. Judging from the looks Anakin's getting from the rest of the Council, she's probably not the only one doing so.

Yoda nods. "Skywalker, will you rejoin the Jedi Order?"

"I would have to give up my wife, won't I? I'd have to give up my children?"

"Yes."

Anakin sighs through his nose. "Then I respectfully decline."

Yoda hums and watches Anakin for a little longer, but Anakin returns a gaze that is sure and clear. Yoda turns to Ahsoka.

"Young Tano."

"Hello, Master Yoda," Ahsoka says.

"Hmm. Jedi, you are not, yet call us 'masters,' you do."

Ahsoka says nothing to that.

"State of mind, Jedi is." Yoda reaches out to her through the Force and Ahsoka lets her mental shields fall. "Good. Yes. Just. Yes, yes. The Force, you still serve."

"I do."

"Grown powerful, you have. Much too, you've learned. Acknowledged you, I did, in the Jedi Temple. Knight you properly, I would like. Will you rejoin the Jedi Order?"

Ahsoka shifts her weight from one foot to the other. "I can't."

As promised, pride races across the Force bond between her and Anakin. Surprise spikes in the Force from half of the Council too. Yoda leans forward in his seat to peer at Ahsoka, expecting an explanation.

"I have an Attachment that I won't give up. It's not…it's not the Jedi way. I gave her my padawan braid."

Shaak blinks awake. "You what? Young Tano, are you engaged?"

"Yeah," Ahsoka says, then with more confidence, "yes, kind of."

"Wait, to Riyo?" Anakin asks.

"Yeah."

"Senator Riyo Chuchi? The girl you said was being tortured yesterday?" Obi-Wan asks.

"Yes. She was arrested a couple days ago for taking me in when I left the Order. I left yesterday to find out where they're keeping her and while I now have that information, I still can't free her all by myself. I need help."

"You refuse to join the Order and ask for our help in the same breath?" Kota asks. "Such impudence!"

"And if I did agree to rejoin the Order, you'd tell me to let that Attachment go," Ahsoka says. There's an angry tremor in her voice, and she clears her throat. "At least this way, Jedi values aren't compromised."

"Who would have the authority to torture a Senator?" Obi-Wan asks.

"The new Sith Apprentice, Darth Kayip."

"You mean Barriss Offee?" Shaak asks.

Damn. Ahsoka looks down at her feet and wishes she didn't have to say this in front of Luminara. "Yes."

Luminara goes still. The other masters glance in her direction before looking back at Ahsoka.

"Do you have a plan?" Obi-Wan asks.

"Yes." Ahsoka tells them the plan.

"It's an ambitious plan," Luminara says.

"I agree," Shaak says. "The Senator's imprisonment is regrettable, but I do not think we are strong enough for something of this magnitude. We should wait until we have regrouped."

"Wait? Wait for what?" Anakin asks. He crosses his arms over his chest. "Wait until the Emperor's hold over the galaxy solidifies? Wait for him to track down the rest of surviving Jedi? There will never be a good time to move against the Emperor."

"Must we split up?" Obi-Wan asks. "We should take care of them one by one."

"No, that would take too much time, and they'd be more prepared for us the next time we strike," Ahsoka says. "If we're doing this, we might as well end it. Will you help me?"

"Yes," Obi-Wan says. "I will."

"As will I," Luminara says.

The other Council Members decline, but it's enough.

"Thank you, Masters," Ahsoka says.

* * *

The property is a lot more quiet than Ahsoka expected. She's in the second structure on the property, which might have been a barn at one point, but now functions as the workshop. Anakin keeps his tools here, along with a half-completed speeder he's restoring.

Ahsoka sits on the roof of the speeder and inspects her gear. Jedi might be fastidious, but apart from their lightsabers, they don't much care for their belongings in any way. Serving in the war with the clone troopers has taught Ahsoka the value of maintenance. And not just for weapons either, but for every single piece of gear. Ahsoka goes over her boots with a rag and a bit of olive oil, cleaning off the ash and dirt. There're some salt stains near the soles that probably came from the snow on Pantora. Ahsoka treats these with vinegar and water, then olive oil. Satisfied, Ahsoka puts her boots back on and goes over her gauntlets, her comlink, and her lightsabers with a practiced eye.

While she does this, Katooni slides through the workshop doors. Ahsoka smiles at her and, emboldened, she climbs up onto the speeder to join her. Force-sensitive younglings aren't as clumsy as non-sensitive younglings are, but even the balance that the Force grants Katooni can't hide the awkwardness of someone who's grown quickly in height over a short amount of time and must now relearn how to move around in their own skin. Still, Ahsoka sees a fledgeling gracefulness in Katooni's movements; signs of the woman she might grow up to be.

"Padawan Tano?"

"Ahsoka."

Katooni looks up at her, her eyebrows scrunched together.

"Call me 'Ahsoka.' I'm not a Jedi anymore."

"Ahsoka. You're leaving again," Katooni says, almost accusingly. She must have realized how petulant she sounded, because she tries again. "Please don't go. What if you don't come back?"

Fear chills the air around them. Katooni's doing her best to put a stopper on it, but Ahsoka senses it anyway. She uses the Force to send the supplies back to their places around the workshop, then turns to the girl.

"How old are you, Katooni?"

"Twelve standard years. My birthday's in three months."

"Ah." Ahsoka thinks it over for a moment, then reaches into her belt pouch and pulls out the Jedi holocron. Katooni gasps.

"Master Yoda entrusted me with this," Ahsoka says. "It's taught me many things about the Force. Someone will choose you as their padawan soon, so you'll need to be prepared too." Ahsoka holds it out to Katooni, and she gasps again and looks up at Ahsoka with wide eyes. "I'm letting you borrow this. I'll come back for it after I'm done on Coruscant. Do you understand?"

Katooni accepts the holocron with both hands. "Yes, Pa-Ahsoka. I won't let you down."

But there's something off about her answer. Ahsoka puts a hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong?"

Katooni shakes her head and shrinks back, but Ahsoka pulls her into a one-armed hug.

"What's wrong? You can talk to me."

"I know I need to train, and I used to like training, but for some reason, I don't feel like it anymore. I'm so tired, Ahsoka. I sleep, but it doesn't help. I don't feel like eating anything. I don't know what's wrong with me."

Oh. Whenever Ahsoka felt the same way, she would visit Riyo to talk.

"Do you know why?" Ahsoka asks. Katooni shakes her head again.

"It's silly."

"It can't be silly if it's bothering you this much," Ahsoka says. Katooni bows her head. Ahsoka sighs and sifts gently through the Force for the answer.

"It doesn't seem fair to go on living when so many people have died, doesn't it?" Ahsoka asks. Anyone connected strongly enough to the Force would have felt the Jedi Purge. She felt it, Anakin and Luminara felt it, of course Katooni would have felt it too. Lived it, actually, if Ahsoka's guess is correct.

"Why did they have to die?" Katooni whispers. "Maybe if I were better, stronger, I could have done something. I should've done something. I was right there."

"Don't do that," Ahsoka says. Katooni looks up at her, her eyes wet with tears. "There is nothing more you could have done. What happened is not your fault."

"You promise?"

"I wouldn't lie to you. Not about this."

Katooni leans against Ahsoka's side. "It was so cold. Colder than Ilum. Petro went to fight, but Zatt went to slice speeders. I don't know where the others went. We all got separated."

"Do you have Force bonds with the others you went to the Gathering with?" Ahsoka asks. Katooni nods.

"I haven't looked for them in the Force yet. I'm scared."

"If they're out there, then they're probably just as scared as you," Ahsoka says. "Do you want to find them?"

Katooni hesitates, but nods her head. Ahsoka drops her arm from Katooni's shoulders in favor of holding her hand.

"Breathe with me," Ahsoka says. She breathes in. Out. Katooni follows her lead and closes her eyes. Her pulse is quick in Ahsoka's hands, but it eventually evens out as she falls into deeper meditation. Ahsoka can't follow where Katooni's mind goes in the Force, but she can be here for her now, while she's out there searching. Moments turn to minutes, and fresh tears roll down Katooni's cheeks.

"Oh, Katooni," Ahsoka whispers, but Katooni smiles up at her.

"I found someone!" she shouts. "Zatt! I found him. He's alive, he's…." Katooni's voice breaks and Ahsoka pulls her into a tight hug. Katooni keeps mumbling into Ahsoka's shoulder.

"He's alive, he's alive, he's alive."

* * *

When the Banshee lands in the clearing a half hour later, all the masters and younglings hide in the house. The only people who boldly go out to greet the ship are Ahsoka and Anakin. Anakin, freshly shaved and dressed once more in his Jedi robes, crosses his arms and watches the loading ramp go down, unimpressed. Luminara and Obi-Wan walk out to stand with them.

"This is the bounty hunter you mentioned?" Luminara asks.

"Yup," Ahsoka says. The end of the ramp settles on the grass, and at the top stands Asajj Ventress, her helmet visor up over the top of her head.

"Her?" Luminara gestures to Asajj. "She's your contact? She is not a bounty hunter, she is an assassin."

"Have we met?" Asajj asks.

"You tried to kill me," Luminara says.

"I've tried killing a lot of sentients, so you'll have to be more specific. Ahsoka."

"Asajj. You sure you want to antagonize everyone here?" Ahsoka asks.

"It's the only way we know how to interact. Anything else would be strange, isn't that right, Obi-Wan?" Asajj's voice goes as smooth as silk as she addresses him. "I hear you mounted Grievous's head on your wall. Mount anything else lately?"

"If you're trying to make me blush, you'll have to do better than that, Ventress," Obi-Wan says, as lightly as one would greet a distant classmate, or the cashier of a Caf house before they place an order. Luminara gazes around at the people around her as if they've all lost their minds. Anakin huffs and walks up the ramp.

"We're burning daylight. Let's get this over with."

"Indeed," Asajj says. "All aboard who's coming aboard."

The ship is just as run down and dirty as Ahsoka remembers it. She follows Asajj to the cockpit and sees Lassa in the co-pilot's chair. R7 settles near the port and plugs in.

Lassa hands Ahsoka a data chip. "Your cut of the credits is in there."

"Thanks, Lassa." Ahsoka puts the data chip in her back pouch. "Asajj. I have a question."

"No." Asajj sets her helmet on the dashboard and runs a hand over the top of her head, mussing up her hair. It's long enough to start creeping over the tops of her ears.

"When you were an assassin, were you ever conflicted?" Ahsoka asks.

Asajj pauses in the middle of flipping a switch and glances back at her.

"Yes. Sometimes I couldn't decide how I wanted to kill a particular target. Do I go the easy way, or the fun way?"

Lassa chuckles.

Ahsoka rolls her eyes. "You know what I mean."

"The answer is no. Before Dooku's treachery, my path was clear. I was unapologetically Sith, and the Jedi were scum to me."

"Is it possible for a Sith to be in conflict?"

"Sith are constantly in conflict, but I suppose you mean internally. There is no room in the Dark Side for doubt. Either one has confidence in their path, or the Dark Side crushes them."

The door opens, revealing Luminara.

"Ahsoka?" She asks. "I-hello. I was unaware there were other people on the ship."

"Hello, Master Jedi. I'm Captain Lassa Rhayme." Lassa waves cheerfully and Luminara gives her a polite nod.

"Navy?"

"Pirate."

Luminara sighs and Ahsoka gives her an apologetic look. "You've made quite the circle of friends during your time away from the Order, Ahsoka. Are there any other outlaws we'll be working with that I should know about?"

Ahsoka ducks her head to hide a smile. "Nah, that's it. Did you need something, Master?"

"I wanted to talk. Is this a good time?"

"Sure."

"Yes. Leave me to fly my ship in peace," Asajj says. "Master Jedi."

"Ventress."

Ahsoka leaves the cockpit with Luminara and the both of them take a stroll down the ship's main corridor.

"Master Yoda sent you to fight Barriss," Luminara says. "What happened?"

Ahsoka crosses her arms and avoid' Luminara's gaze. "We fought, and she escaped. She's still alive, but she's Sith now."

Luminara pauses. "Sith?"

The flash of yellow in Barriss's eyes comes to mind. "I'm sorry, Master, but she is. Yellow eyes, Force Lightning, the works! She's Sith. But I sensed some conflict within her."

"Are you saying there's a chance to turn her back to the Light?"

"I'm only telling you what I know. I tried talking to her, and I wasn't enough, and now that Barriss is torturing Riyo, I don't think I'm the right person to follow up on what this conflict might mean. The next time we meet, one of us is going to die, so you better get to her first, Master."

"Ahsoka!" Anakin steps out of the galley and waves at them before they reach the cargo hold. "Get in here, I need to talk to you."

Ahsoka excuses herself and follows Anakin into the galley. It's not as nice as the galley on the Rose Bride, as it's streaked with dirt and grease and it's understocked. The last time Ahsoka was here, the conservator held only a half empty carton of eggs, a bottle of muja juice, and a six-pack of beer. Ahsoka almost leans against the counter, but thinks better of it and remains standing upright.

"You're engaged," Anakin says.

"Kind of. Almost." Ahsoka smiles, but Anakin doesn't smile back.

"The two of you have been dating for a week."

"Ten days," Ahsoka says. "That's two weeks."

"Like that makes a difference?"

"Don't people use the dating process to get to know each other? Riyo and I have been close friends for years. That must count for something."

"I just want to make sure you aren't rushing into things. My marriage is the reason why I'm so concerned for you. I love Padmé, and I don't regret my life with her, but sometimes I wonder if we were ready to get married in the first place. I was only nineteen."

"Oh! Well, if it helps, Riyo and I decided on a really long engagement," Ahsoka says. "Better?"

"Better," Anakin says. His eyes soften. "When's the last time you slept?"

"How can I sleep at a time like this?" Ahsoka asks.

"You'll be no use to Riyo exhausted. And it'll be a few hours until we reach Coruscant. Get some rest, Ahsoka."

Ahsoka rolls her eyes, but goes to an unused bunk and fetches a clean bedding pack from a closet. Sleep. She doesn't need sleep, she's fine. Ahsoka makes the bed, lies down, and is lost to the galaxy as soon as her head hits the pillow.

* * *

Magnus and Titon are dead. Riyo remembers Titon falling from the parking strip, his body a quickly disappearing blue figure against the dark abyss.

She thinks about Magnus locking himself in with Barriss and takes a shuddery breath to steady herself. They're dead and she still ended up in here.

The smell of cigarettes wafts through the room. Riyo looks up from thumbing her silka beads and sees wisps of bright smoke drifting throughout her cell. These wisps twist together into thick ropes and these ropes flow into one pillar in the center of the room to form Magnus, tinged yellow and indistinct around the edges.

"Riyo," he says. His voice doesn't match up with the movement of his mouth, and it echoes a little. Riyo slowly gets to her feet and almost falls over from how weak she is, but is able to keep upright. She stumbles out to meet Magnus, dizzy from the drop of blood pressure. The closer she gets to him, the stronger the smell of cigarettes and aftershave gets.

Magnus's eyes are dim with age and they look upon Riyo with infinite tenderness.

"I'm so sorry. I couldn't protect you."

Riyo gazes at Magnus, drinking in every hazy detail she can. The slope of his shoulders, the rough stubble on his cheek, the streaks of grey hair in his temples. Riyo touches her forehead to the center of Magnus's chest and can't help the tears that roll down her face. Even though he's made of smoke, he's solid against her head, and warm with a phantom heat. Riyo's shoulders begin to tremble.

"Oh, Riyo," Magnus breathes. "Stop crying, girl! Stop crying. You're breaking this poor man's heart."

"I didn't get to say goodbye," Riyo murmurs into his chest.

"Ah, I don't want goodbyes. I've said farewell to a lot of good men, and I don't want one from you."

"Why am I seeing you now, Magnus?" Riyo lifts her head and wipes her eyes. "I know this isn't real. Am I dying? Am I dead and I just don't know it yet?"

"No. You're not the Sea Goddess's just yet. You're not even the Trickster's. Right now, you belong to Blizzard God."

Riyo stares. "Impossible. I'm a political prisoner."

"You're an underdog in a battle against a despicable foe," Magnus says. "Or do you not resist that Sith girl every time she comes back here to torment you?"

Riyo's eyes turn steely. "You know I do."

The corners of Magnus's mouth twitch up. "That's my girl." His outline gets hazier as the smoke begins to disperse. Riyo gasps and tries to grab his hand, but it disappears under her touch.

"Wait," Riyo says. She feels as if there's a weight in her heart. "Don't go! Magnus, please."

"I'm sorry, Riyo. My time is up." Magnus's body disappears more and more by the second. He reaches out to her with his remaining hand, but stops short of touching her face.

"But I'll never see you again!" Riyo shouts. Magnus smiles down at her and his hand settles on her blank wrist.

"I will be right here," he says. And just like that, he's gone.

* * *

Note Bene: When I started writing this story, I needed a character who knew Riyo, one who could help flesh her out as a character, so I searched the show for inspiration and found her nameless bodyguard. I decided to call him Captain Magnus Sterno, and he has performed above and beyond all my expectations. I will miss him very much.

Kina Ha and Rahm Kota are two Jedi masters from the Extended Universe. The total amount of research I did into their characters consisted of me skimming their Wookiepedia articles to see if they survived the Purge, so if I got details wrong, I apologize.

Please leave feedback. If there were parts that stood out to you, let me know. I'll see you next week, readers. Be safe.


	17. Take Her Back

Riyo no longer has the strength to walk around. She can stand up if she's careful, but she can't take more than a couple steps without collapsing onto her knees. The lack of sleep combined with the lack of food must be finally getting to her, because she's been getting chills and she strongly suspects that she's running a fever.

The skittering she hears now and then that she first attributed to rats has turned into the scraping of blades against stone. It's the sound her kitchen knives make against the grain when she sharpens them fine enough to cut through paper, all dangerous promise for one wrong move. She knows that it's not a knife, however, but the blade of a spear.

Riyo looks up and sees Barriss Offee staring down at her. She didn't even notice her come in (not a good sign), but when she checks her mental shields, she's pleased to find them up and intact. She must look more terrible than she thought, because Barriss looks down at her with thinly-veiled concern.

"What do you want?" Riyo asks.

"I came to try my hand at gloating," Barriss says. She schools her face into a neutral expression. "Today's the day."

"What day?"

"The day your purpose is fulfilled. Ahsoka's coming here to Coruscant to save you. She's going to spring the trap that you've so graciously baited for me."

Riyo looks closer at Barriss, wondering if she's lying, or if she's a hallucination. Ahsoka can't come here. She shouldn't. It's too dangerous.

"Once Ahsoka is dead, it'll be your turn," Barriss says. "I'll bury you two in the same grave, that way you can finally be together. What do you think?"

"Screw you, Offee," Riyo says. "No one can do what you've done and wash their hands of the consequences."

Barriss crouches down so that the two of them can look at each other evenly.

"I should cut that tongue clean out of your mouth. Say another word. Please."

Riyo scowls, but drops her gaze. Barriss hums and stands back up to leave.

* * *

Thanks to a R7's ill-gotten codes, the Banshee is able to pass into Imperial space and onto Coruscant without any trouble. The ship lowers down into the undercity and lands on a pad not far from the Jedi Temple. Lassa is armed with a couple bandoliers-worth of bombs, which she hides under a cloak. She's also too notorious a criminal to exist on Coruscant, so she's borrowed Asajj's helmet.

Asajj also wears a dark cloak. Lassa closes the clasp in the front and smoothes down the front of the cloak. Asajj raises an eyebrow.

"Lassa."

"What?" Lassa pinches the hem of the cloak between two fingers.

"It'll work. You said yourself that they're phasing out the clones for worse-trained people."

"I know."

"And they say Skywalker's the Chosen One, so he'll take care of the Emperor."

"I know."

"You've covered all the different scenarios. We all know what to do in case anything goes wrong."

"I know."

"Lassa."

"What?"

Asajj pulls Lassa into an open-mouth kiss. Ahsoka rolls her eyes as R7 wolf-whistles. Anakin, Obi-Wan and Luminara pretend not to notice, and make their way off the ship and onto the landing platform. Ahsoka follows them out and gestures to R7 to come with her.

A couple minutes later, Asajj and Lassa join them out on the landing pad, both looking very smug.

"Does everyone know the plan?" Ahsoka asks. Everyone nods at her. "May the Force be with us all."

"You too, Snips," Anakin says. He and Obi-Wan pull up their hoods and disappear into the smoke of the undercity. Lassa lowers the helmet visor over her face and takes a rickety staircase up to the surface. Luminara too, pulls down a veil to hide her face and takes a different path, leaving Ahsoka, Asajj and R7 on the pad.

"Let's go get your girl," Asajj says. The two women and the droid make their way across thin catwalks, up twisting flights of stairs and even cling to the sides of buildings and jump to the next one until they reach the shining surface of Coruscant just outside the Imperial Prison.

BOOM.

A bomb goes off far, far away. Asajj cups a hand over her ear and smiles.

"She started early."

BOOM.

The muted sound of another explosion reaches them from the opposite direction. From the Jedi Temple.

"And that means we're late," Asajj says.

"Stay close to us, R7," Ahsoka says. R7 beeps. "Ready?"

"Since before you were born," Asajj says. Together, they walk right up to the doors of the prison. They could sneak around, but they're not just here to rescue Riyo, they're here to raise hell.

CRUNCH. The heavy duty doors twist into scrap under their combined powers and are ripped out, leaving behind a gaping maw with a few sparking wires in the wall. Security holocams implode, their lenses popping out and dropping to the floor. When the trooper guards take aim at them, their blasters are crushed and pulled from their hands right before they black out. The bodies and debris part before the two women, and they pass through without breaking their stride.

On the other side of the doors is the reception station. Even though the troopers manning it are behind a two-inch thick wall of blaster bolt-proof window, it doesn't protect them from Ahsoka and Asajj, who simply use the Force to give them the same treatment they gave the previous troopers.

Ahsoka pushes a button with the Force and unlocks the door, letting R7 roll into the reception station and plug into the socket in the wall. After a couple moments, he beeps.

"Good." Ahsoka closes and locks the door. "Five minutes, okay?"

R7 wishes them luck.

"This way," Ahsoka says, compelled and guided by the Force. Asajj follows her lead, the both of them smashing through the next set of doors and into a hallway.

PEW PEW PEW. Behind the doors are several troopers that open fire upon them. Ahsoka and Asajj draw a lightsaber each to deflect the blaster fire coming their way. One trooper takes a reflected shot in the forehead and goes down. Another takes a shot in the chest. All the while, Ahsoka and Asajj press their advantage at the same leisurely pace they've been keeping so far. When they've halved their distance, several of the remaining troopers drop like puppets whose strings have suddenly been cut, and the other troopers are slammed into the walls by the Force. As soon as the coast is clear, Ahsoka and Asajj deactivate their lightsabers and step over the bodies.

They make their way through the prison like this, destroying every set of doors they come across and laying out every trooper who gets in their way. In their wake, they leave behind a trail of shrapnel, broken glass and unconscious men.

This wouldn't be possible to do in an open area, but because Ahsoka and Asajj are sticking to the hallways, they bottleneck the amount of troopers they face at every barricade and aren't overrun by sheer numbers.

"Over here," Ahsoka says, taking a left at the next junction.

Regular cells in this prison are made of smooth, solid duracrete save for one wall, which has a laser hatch installed to keep the prisoners inside. There are no furnishings whatsoever, and prisoners are not allowed any possessions save for the clothes on their backs. The laser hatch, however, functions like a window, and the prisoner can look through it and see what's going on around them. They can hear what's going on too, and it's not uncommon for inmates to strike up conversations with their neighbors.

In solitary confinement, there is no laser hatch. There's just duracrete and metal. As soon as Ahsoka and Asajj reach this part of the prison, they begin to run. The Force pulses in Ahsoka's head, telling her which turns to take. Soon enough, they hear Riyo screaming.

They turn the corner and find their way blocked by Barriss Offee, who's accompanied by a dozen troopers. Barris raises her hand and in her fist, she holds a familiar push button remote. As soon as she takes her thumb off the button, Riyo's screaming eases into a pained whimper.

Ahsoka's reminded of that whole awful mission on Zygerria.

"Kayip," she says through clenched teeth. She might also have growled. She's not sure of the details.

"Ahsoka," Barriss says. Ahsoka's eyes narrow at the sound of her voice modulator. "I knew you would come."

The Force curls around Ahsoka like a steel coil ready to snap. "Let Riyo go."

"No, you don't get to make demands." Barriss lifts the remote. This time, Ahsoka really does growl, low and guttural. Barriss almost takes a step back, but when Ahsoka doesn't move from her spot, she smiles.

"Better. I set my trap for one Force-sensitive and I get two. What a welcome treat." Barriss turns to Asajj. "Hello, Ventress. Have we formally met?"

Asajj looks Barriss up and down with open disdain.

"You're kidding me," Asajj says. "You're the one Darth Sidious got to replace me?"

"I'm not a mere assassin like you were. I'm a Sith Lord and far more powerful than you could ever hope to be."

"You're an impudent child with mommy issues." Asajj gives her the most contemptuous sneer that Ahsoka's ever seen. It's so intense that she's actually surprised that Barriss didn't spontaneously combust right there and then.

"Seeing as she's not here right now, I'll just have to be the one who gives you the thrashing you deserve," Asajj says.

Barriss scowls and presses a button on her vambrace. Behind Ahsoka and Asajj, a few cells open up to let out a number of troopers; they spill into the hallway, blocking off their escape, and hold their blasters at the ready.

"I was going to kill you, but I've orders to bring you to the Emperor alive," Barriss says. "Did you know that he was quite close to turning Master Skywalker to the Dark Side? He would have succeeded too if it weren't for you; you showed him that there was another way. So we've come up with a new plan: kill Senator Chuchi and you'll turn to the Dark, and since Master Skywalker would follow you to the ends of the galaxy, he'll follow you into the Dark as well."

Barriss uncaps the other end of her remote, revealing another push button. Ahsoka lifts her gauntlet to her mouth.

"Now, R7."

CLACK CLACK CLACK. The doors to all the rest of the cells slide open in unison, and the troopers look around in confusion.

Hey. R7's beeps echo through the prison's PA system. Riot.

"Kark!" one of the troopers screams as a long tentacle snakes out from one of the opened cells and wraps around his neck. The tentacle pulls him off his feet and into the cell, where he screams in anguish. Other troopers begin to yell as the other inmates around them come out and attack them, wreaking havoc on their formation. Some troopers run, others try to bark orders.

In the chaos, while Barriss is distracted, Ahsoka summons the remote from her hand. As soon as it slaps into her palm, she crushes it and lets the remains fall to the floor.

"Two lines!" an officer yells. "Form up! We are not letting this scum overrun this prison!"

The troopers fall into order and open fire on the inmates, who flee into the rest of the prison. The troopers give chase, leaving the three Force users by themselves in the hall.

Asajj inhales, her eyes closed. The temperature was already cold to begin with, thanks to Barriss, but now, with Asajj pulling on the Dark Side of the Force, it plummets to subzero. Asajj has always masked most of her Force presence, even during fights. It's what made her such a good assassin. To feel the Force flex through her now…both Ahsoka and Barriss instinctively step away from her.

"You've failed, Offee," Asajj says. "The Senator is alive, Ahsoka isn't Dark, and she and Skywalker are free to be idiots together until the end of time." When Asajj opens her eyes again, the rims of her irises are streaked with red. "You haven't been Sith for long, so you don't know, but you can guess how well Sidious takes failure, can't you?"

Fear oozes through the Force, and Asajj steps forward, reveling in it. Barriss takes another involuntary step back and cringes at her mistake.

"Oh, so you do know. Interesting. It won't be good, I can tell you from experience." Asajj summons her lightsabers into her hands and activates them. "In fact, it'll be quite horrible for you. Shall I give you a taste?"

Barriss snarls and activates her own lightsaber. "You underestimate my power."

Asajj gives a twisted smile that would make newborn younglings cry. "Prove it."

Barriss rushes forward and swings her lightsaber at Asajj, who simply swats it away with one blade and lazily swipes at Barriss's head with the other. Barriss dodges it and stares.

It's an insult, really. That counterattack isn't one that you'd use against a proper opponent, but one you'd use against younglings just learning how to fight.

"You!" Barriss attacks again, her sword point stabbing at Asajj's face, but Asajj slaps the point away with the smallest movement and jabs in turn with her other blade, almost impaling Barriss through the chest. She advances on the younger woman, forcing her down the hallway. Her footwork is sure, and the movements of her blades are minimal.

As soon as they turn the corner out of sight, R7 chatters through Ahsoka's comlink, telling her that the warden's sent out an SOS signal. There are now three signals all in all. One from the mess that Lassa's bombs have made of one of the major power plants of Coruscant. A quarter of the surface is plunged in darkness and chaos. The other one comes from the Emperor, Sidious himself, who is under attack. What's left of the GAR has been split into three parts to deal with all the problems. Ahsoka's eyebrow markings go up.

"Huh. The plan's actually working? Send a feed to Lassa, R7. She'll coordinate us when she gets back to the ship."

The plan may be working, but it's not over yet. Ahsoka turns to go into Riyo's cell.

* * *

As soon as Ahsoka steps into the cell, she's hit with the stench of piss and copper and almost staggers back, breathless. She pauses to get her bearings back before she takes a proper scan of the cell. Riyo's huddled in the corner, her knees drawn up to her chest and her eyes closed. Her chapped lips move in a silent stream of words and Ahsoka realizes that she's praying, the silka bracelet used as prayer beads in her left hand.

"Riyo," Ahsoka whispers, and Riyo's bloodshot eyes open to look at her. Her head is unsteady and she unfolds her legs as if to stand up, but seems to think better of it.

"'Soka?" she whispers. Ahsoka comes closer and falls to her knees beside her. There's so much blood. Riyo's ruined shirt is stiff with it and it even stains the skin on her neck and around her fingernails. It's streaked across her face, like she's been trying to stem a nosebleed. Riyo's eyes narrow in her usual appraising look, but the effect is undercut by how exhausted she appears.

"You're a very convincing…umm." Riyo struggles to finish her thought. "Convincing hallucination." Her consonants are slurred and her words run together. This lack of eloquence is somehow more unnerving than her appearance, and Ahsoka struggles to believe that this really is Riyo, and not some pale imitation.

"You've been hallucinating?"

Riyo nods and her entire upper body wobbles. "This is…the second time we've had this exact conversation? They won't let me sleep, so I can't…. What was I talking about?"

Ahsoka doesn't know what to say. Riyo's face screws up, like she's about to cry and is trying not to.

"You're cruel to tease me like this, but please stay," Riyo says. Her voice cracks, and she clears her throat. "I'd rather see you, even if it isn't really you."

Ahsoka swallows around a lump in her throat. "It's me, Riyo. I can prove it." She raises her hand and unlatches the shock collar from around Riyo's neck with the Force. The collar floats over to Ahsoka and she clenches down on it, crushing it in her grip and breaking it into pieces. Riyo stares dumbly at the broken collar, then reaches up with her bandaged hand to feel her neck, her eyes wide and dazed.

"It really is you."

"Riyo, you…" Ahsoka's vision narrows down onto Riyo's hand. She throws the pieces of the collar away and gathers Riyo into her arms. Riyo shakes, as fragile as a baby bird, but she clutches at the front of Ahsoka's shirt and buries her face into the crook below her chin.

"It's you. You came," Riyo whispers. Her hands touch Ahsoka's shoulders and sweep up to her montrals, as if reaffirming her presence. Ahsoka pulls Riyo closer to her and feels the Force rising like bile in the back of her throat. She fights against it, but she can't hold it back. She closes her eyes and unleashes it against the walls of the cell.

BOOM. The Force whips great cracks into the walls, sending small clouds of dust into the air. Behind her, the mirror shatters into pieces. It's enough, and Ahsoka sucks in air through her mouth and pulls the Force back, unwilling to inflict more damage on the rest of the prison. Even if she reduces this place to rubble, it isn't going to help Riyo. If Riyo notices the thrashing of the cell, she doesn't even flinch. She might be too preoccupied with Ahsoka's presence for that.

Ahsoka pulls back to get another look at Riyo, who's wretched and maimed and also beautiful just for being alive.

"I'm going to take care of you," Ahsoka says. Riyo nods and she bites her lower lip to keep from bursting into tears.

"Okay. Um, okay."

"Can you walk?" Ahsoka asks.

"Not very far."

"That's a 'no.'" Ahsoka curls one arm around Riyo's back and hooks the other under her knees. She lifts her up to carry her, assisted by the Force. Riyo groans as her shoulder shifts and she reaches around Ahsoka's neck to hold on. Ahsoka turns and leaves the cell.

Chaos reigns throughout the prison. Shards of glass from broken light fixtures litter the floors along with discarded weapons, debris, and the bodies of inmates and troopers alike. The solitary wing is deserted, but the sounds of blaster fire and fighting from the rest of the prison echo down to them. Ahsoka kicks at a discarded hand blaster and it skitters over the floor. She pauses.

"Can you shoot?"

"Yes, give the hallucinating girl a blaster," Riyo mumbles into the air next to Ahsoka's montral. "That sounds like a wonderful plan."

Ahsoka smiles. "Forget I asked."

The Force beckons to her and she follows It down another couple hallways until she passes under a gigantic hole in the ceiling. The sky outside is cloudy gray and threatens rain.

"Oh kriff," Ahsoka says. Lightsaber marks are heavy in this area, and now that Ahsoka thinks about it, she realizes that she's been following a lightsaber trail since she left Riyo's cell.

"Hold on," Ahsoka says. Riyo grabs handfuls of her shirt. Ahsoka Force Jumps out of the hole and lands on the roof. The Force yells and Ahsoka takes off running before she gets the chance to observe her surroundings.

PEW PEW PEW.

Baster bolts whizz past Ahsoka's head, missing her and Riyo by mere inches. Most of the prison troopers are dealing with the riot inside, but there are some still on patrol outside, making sure that no prisoners escape.

BOOM. Ahsoka flinches as the prison speeder lot explodes, belching a gigantic fireball into the air like a beacon for the rest of the planet. The shooting also pauses, and Ahsoka reaches the end of the roof and Force Jumps from the eaves to the parapet of the duracrete wall surrounding the prison. Amidst the smoke shine two beams of yellow and one of red, marking Asajj and Barriss's duel.

PEW PEW.

"Kark!" Ahsoka ducks and simply falls out of the prison from the parapet. She uses the Force to pad her landing and takes off into the undercity with Riyo still clutched in her arms.

"Lassa!" she yells. Her comlink's still attached to her forearm, but it should still pick up what she says if she yells loud enough, as it's on walkie-talkie mode.

"You okay?"

"I'm on my way back. Riyo's with me."

"Hell yeah! I'll be here at the ship."

"Lassa, what about R7?"

"Your droid's already on his way here, worry about yourself."

Ahsoka expected to get a lot of alarmed looks from passerby on her way back to the Banshee. Riyo's state is deplorable and can't be hidden. Instead, they glance at her with either apathy, or pity. A couple tentative brushes against their minds with the Force reveal that they think that Riyo's been mugged, or is yet another wasted life who's dying down in the undercity, and Ahsoka's trying in vain to get her to a hospital. They're not right, but they're not wrong either.

The Banshee is right where they last parked it. R7 waits at the foot of the loading ramp and as soon as he sees Ahsoka, he starts whistling in hysterics.

"I'm fine, buddy." Ahsoka walks past him up the ramp, then takes Riyo into the lounge just behind the cockpit. "Lassa?"

"Oh kriff, that's a lot of blood." The other Pantoran leaves her post at the pilot's seat to join her. Ahsoka puts Riyo down on the table. Riyo whimpers and tries to hold on to Ahsoka, and she must lean down to whisper reassurances to her.

"I'm right here, okay?"

"You're going to go again," Riyo clutches at Ahsoka's hands. "I just got you back, don't leave!"

"You're not gonna lose me, Riyo." Ahsoka moves out of the way for a moment so that Lassa can scan Riyo with a medisensor. Lassa reads the results, then scrolls up and reads them again. "What is it?"

Lassa keeps her voice down. "Not good. Starvation, dehydration, sleep deprivation, she's lost a lot of blood, and one of her wounds is infected. She needs a hospital."

"Don't take me to a hospital," Riyo murmurs.

"Hush, kid."

"We can't go to a hospital now, they'll arrest us all!" Ahsoka says. "What can you do for her?"

Lassa shrugs. "Not much. I can feed her, change her bandages. Maybe she'll even take a nap. We're in the final phase of the plan, and that won't last forever, so we'll get her to a hospital eventually."

"And it'd be a lot sooner if I helped," Ahsoka says. Riyo sighs helplessly and tries to sit up, but can't.

"Don't do it, 'Soka…."

"I have to, Riyo." Ahsoka tucks an errant lock of hair behind Riyo's ear. "I'll be back, okay?"

Riyo gives a slow nod. "Okay."

Ahsoka gives Riyo's uninjured hand one last squeeze before she turns to leave.

* * *

Asajj and Barriss have paused their lightsaber duel in favor of throwing around the remains of speeders. Asajj steps aside to let one whoosh past her to crash into the building behind her. When it explodes, she doesn't bother looking back, but summons the resulting shrapnel and sends it at Barriss.

Barriss raises her hands and deflects the smaller pieces with her bare palms, but runs off to avoid the bigger one. She launches herself up onto the parapet and into the Galactic City beyond. Asajj raises her comlink to her mouth.

"Offee's on the run! She's headed your way, Unduli."

"I sense her."

Asajj Force Jumps onto the parapet and leaps onto the roof of the neighboring building, chasing Barriss across the Coruscanti skyline. As she lands onto a skylight, cracking the glass beneath her, her comlink beeps to life again.

"Asajj, Ahsoka's out. We're waiting on you."

"No, you're not! I just got out too. This kid…." Asajj stops in her tracks as she watches Barriss jump through an air speeder pathway, narrowly avoiding getting hit by a hapless pilot and causing an accident. Asajj leaps away from the explosion. "This kid's nuts! Unduli, I'm out, she's all yours."

* * *

The plan called for Luminara to wait for Barriss just outside the prison, but the Force called her here, to the second warehouse behind the Jedi Temple. She's been here before, but never for long, and she's never felt the need to inspect it the way she does now, noticing the rickety scaffolding, the chalk marks drawn onto the dusty duracrete floor, and the odd rubber ball here and there. There aren't any bodies in here, but the whole place is still eerie.

Barriss is coming. Luminara senses her through the Force Bond they share. It's cold and frayed, and it's been hacked at, but it's still there. Fear shoots down the bond now. Fear of Asajj, and fear of failure, but mostly fear of Sidious. Sith Lords are not forgiving people.

BOOM.

Barriss smashes through the door of the warehouse, stumbles and falls. Her run across the city has left her breathless, and she doesn't notice Luminara blocking her path until after she picks herself up and dusts herself off as best she can. When she finally sees Luminara, she freezes.

Luminara and Barriss stare at one another for a long moment. The lingering bit of yellow in Barriss's eyes melts away, leaving behind unblemished blue irises. Barriss is a mess, her black clothes dusty and scorched from her fight with Asajj. While her hood has been replaced with a new one, it can't hide the bit of gauze that peeks over the opening just under the chin.

"Barriss," Luminara says, relieved to see her again despite what she's here to do. Barriss hesitates, then drops into a brief curtsy.

"Master Unduli."

Luminara frowns. "What happened to your voice?"

Barriss looks away. "Don't pretend you care. We both know you don't."

"That's not true." Luminara takes a step forward, then another, then another. Her footsteps echo around the warehouse as she crosses the remaining distance to stand before her former padawan, but instead of reaching for her lightsaber, she raises her arms out to her sides in surrender.

"Choose carefully the spot in which to place your lightsaber, Barriss."

Barriss's jaw drops and she stares at Luminara in open horror. Her fingers curl into her palms, but her weapon remains untouched.

"No." Barriss shrinks away. "I won't."

"You must." Luminara lowers her arms. "Did you think that this situation would not come to pass when you fell to the Dark Side? Draw your lightsaber."

Barriss looks as if she would like very much not to, but she draws her lightsaber all the same and activates it, washing herself in eerie red light.

"Prepare yourself, Master."

Luminara unclips her lightsaber from her belt and activates it, producing a green blade.

"I should have never left you like I did, Barriss. I have failed you."

"Then we are more well-matched than I thought." Barriss salutes Luminara with her blade before she steps back in a Soresu stance. "We disappoint each other."

Barriss jabs forward with her lightsaber and sends a wave of energy at Luminara, who staggers back. She takes a step to close the gap and jabs again at Luminara's head. With one small movement of her lightsaber, Luminara deflects the lightsaber point away and steps in, letting her blade slide down Barriss's as she gets closer.

Barriss steps back, maintaining the distance and twirls the lightsaber over her head to slash from the other side.

Luminara and Barriss trade blows for a few moments, all traces of Barriss's aggressive style gone in favor of pure Soresu.

It's damn good Soresu too. Luminara remembers the hours of painstaking practice that Barriss spent drilling each move into perfection. The style, however, can't hide the undercurrent of malicious energy behind Barriss's movements, and it isn't long before she runs out of patience and begins attacking more.

Luminara's lightsaber shakes in her hand from the force of Barriss's strikes, and she realizes that if she's not careful, Barriss will disarm her. She slashes at Barriss's head, taking her by surprise, and gets her to drop her guard for the one second it takes for Luminara to push her with the Force. Barriss slides back, but is able to keep on her feet. Luminara turns and jumps across the warehouse and into the rickety scaffolding, landing somewhere near the top. Barriss scowls and jumps into the scaffolding too, only she lands near the middle, and as soon as her feet touch down, Barriss runs along the length of the scaffolding, swinging her lightsaber wildly.

The scaffolding groans and snaps around the both of them and the Force yells in Luminara's head even before she feels the scaffolding tilt precariously to the side. She runs down the length of the scaffolding a split second behind Barriss, internally screaming at herself. Jumping into the scaffolding was a risky move, bordering on the insipid, but the Force called her onto it despite her better judgement.

The scaffolding is falling, falling, falling, collapsing into pieces around her and Barriss's ears and really, what other outcome did Luminara expect from this? She deactivates her lightsaber and begins to swat the jagged edges of broken pipes away from herself with her bare hands. It'll be a miracle if neither of them get impaled; it's a miracle that none of the younglings who played on this contraption weren't killed in the first place. If-when Luminara gets through this, she's going to have a long talk with Ahsoka and the surviving padawans and younglings about the safety of this warehouse.

Luminara sends a Force Blast down, scattering pipes, joints, and planks of wood aside so that she can land on the cleared duracrete floor without twisting an ankle. She immediately runs forward to avoid getting crushed by the rest of the falling scaffolding, and the wreck makes an unholy din as it smashes against the floor.

Luminara ignores the ringing in her ears and looks at Barriss, who has also escaped the collapse. She makes as if to close the distance, but Luminara picks up several lengths of pipe with the Force and aims them at Barriss. One by one, she throws them at her as fast as she possibly can.

Barriss deactivates her lightsaber and begins to dodge them with ease. Some of them have ends that are still red hot from Barriss's lightsaber, and they smoke as they shoot past her. Much like how she deflected shrapnel sent from Asajj, Barriss now deflects the pipes with her bare palms and comes through without a scratch.

Some of the pipes impale the floor at an angle behind her, others continue sailing through the air until they stab into the warehouse wall.

Luminara summons Barriss's lightsaber from her belt.

"No!" Barriss reaches out to summon it back, but Luminara activates her blade and chops it in half. "No!"

The Force Summon becomes a Force Push. Luminara lifts her pinky and forefinger off of her lightsaber handle and concentrates, trying to outlast her former padawan in a test of will and strength. All the while, she comes closer.

"Ah!" Barriss loses and stumbles back from the push, heading for one of the sharpened ends of the pipes embedded in the floor. Her arms fly out, searching for something to grab, but it's too late; she's tipped past the point of recovery, and judging by the look of horror on her face, she knows exactly what's about to happen.

But before that can happen, Luminara reaches out with the Force and pulls Barriss upright. Barriss can only fall to her hands and knees, boneless, as her former master swamps her under the pressure of the Force. Luminara's eyebrows furrow with exertion, and she puts away her lightsaber to free both hands. Behind Barriss, the pipes bend back in on themselves so that they no longer pose a threat to either of them. The rest of the debris is swept out of reach.

"Rrragh!" Barriss lashes out with the Force in a desperate attempt to free herself, but in vain. Her eyes switch back and forth between yellow and blue as she struggles. Luminara stands before her.

"There was a time when all I wanted was to make you proud," Barriss rages, her voice cracking. "To be a knight! How proud are you now, Master?"

"I have always been proud of you. From the very first day, I have been proud." There's a twinge in Luminara's chest as she kneels before Barriss, who becomes still and bows her head. Two dark spots appear in the duracrete between her hands.

"I think it's time I heard this screaming you mentioned." Luminara puts her hand over Barriss's head and together, they swirl down into her mind.

Luminara finds herself in the Jedi Temple, the way it appeared before the Purge. There are no bloodstains. Jedi, young and old alike, stroll through the sunlit halls and talk amongst themselves.

They don't have faces. Luminara tries not to look too closely and strides past them, hoping that they don't notice her. She makes her way through the Temple until she comes across a boarded up door. It's been cleverly disguised to appear like a wall, but Luminara knows better. She activates her lightsaber and demolishes it, revealing a dark staircase.

Luminara stares down this staircase as far as she can see. There aren't any lights to illuminate it, casting it in spooky shadow. She begins her descent, and reaches out and runs her fingertips lightly against the wall to keep herself from tripping. She doesn't know how long she goes down these stairs, but eventually, she reaches the bottom.

There's a single lamp, but the light it casts on the stone walls makes them look like they've been rendered from charcoal drawings.

Barriss is here, dressed in her old clothes. Her face is cast in shadow. She stands at the foot of an unearthed Sith burial pit, unafraid.

"Barriss." Luminara reaches out to her. "Come away from there, this is a place of evil."

Barriss turns around. Her hood is up, obscuring her face. "This is underneath the Jedi Temple, Master. How evil can it be?"

Before Luminara can reply, Barriss crosses her arms over her chest and falls backwards into the pit.

"Barriss!" Luminara rushes to the edge of the pit and looks down into it, but only sees infinite darkness. "Ugh." She can't turn back now. Luminara gathers her skirt in her hands and jumps in after her.

She lands in a pile of bodies, all twisted together. Luminara screams in horror and tries to dig herself out. Clone troopers and Jedi alike are tossed in here, all carved up and cold to the touch. The stench is unbearable. Luminara shoves aside a couple corpses and pulls herself out of the pile, her hood askew.

She almost trips over a cot. Luminara is in the middle of the remains of a medical center. The floor is slick and sticky with half-dried Bacta. A few medical supplies are strewn over the floor, but most are gone from the cabinets, like the place was ransacked. Half of the surgical tools and machines are missing, or broken. Most of the cots have been turned onto their sides and are in need of a wipe down. Bodies, the bodies that Luminara escaped from, are piled high on one side of the medical center, and in the floor beside the bodies is a hole.

The hole is almost ten feet wide and five feet deep. The floor tiles have been torn up to reveal soil, which has been dug through all the way down to bedrock. In the hole with a shovel, is Barriss. Sitting on the edge of the hole with her legs dangling down, is also Barriss. One of them has Sith-yellow eyes and is dressed in all-black. The other is dressed in Barriss's old clothes while she was in the Jedi Order.

"Barriss?" Luminara asks cautiously. Both of them turn to her.

"Yes?" they ask.

"Only, you should call me Darth Kayip," Sith Barriss says, her voice synthetic and eerie. "It's less confusing that way."

SCREECH. Luminara flinches as the other Barriss scrapes the blade of a shovel against bedrock, sending a piercing sound through their ears. Despite how impressive the hole is, she is still trying to dig deeper. Kayip doesn't even blink.

"That's all she does," Kayip says. "She just digs. Makes my job almost too easy if you ask me."

"Whatever for?" Luminara peers closer at that Barriss and notices that her hands are raw and bleeding from the handle of the shovel.

"It's for them," Kayip points at the enormous pile of bodies behind Luminara.

"It's not deep enough." Barriss mutters to herself. She's exhausted. "I must keep going."

"She's never going to get through stone with that shovel," Luminara says. "Barriss, stop."

"I cannot stop." Barriss scrapes the shovel against the stone again. Luminara puts her hands over her ears to save her hearing.

"So you're here to find out why I'm in charge, huh?" Kayip gets up and takes a few stones from the dirt pile. "Come with me, Master. I'll show you."

There are a few Bacta tanks on the far side of the medical hall. One is completely busted through, and their boots crunch over broken glass as they get closer. The second tank is intact and full of Bacta.

"Let's say that this tank is Barriss's faith in the Jedi Order," Kayip says. She holds up the stones. "These are the battles she's participated in over the course of the Clone Wars. Geonosis." Kayip viciously throws the stone at the tank.

BANG. The stone makes large cracks in the glass of the tank and Bacta begins leaking through the hole. Luminara raises her hands, a protest on her lips against any further wanton destruction of Barriss's mind. Kayip, however, isn't done.

"Drongar." BANG. The cracks lengthen and more Bacta bleeds out. The level inside the tank sinks faster.

"Umbara." BANG. Pieces of glass break off and the Bacta rushes out in a stream.

"And a few others." BANG. BANG. BANG. The glass completely shatters, and Bacta floods the medical center. Within seconds, the tank is empty. Kayip turns to Luminara.

"I should thank you, actually. You and the Jedi. You're the ones who gave Barriss the stones."

Luminara's heart sinks in her chest. She looks back at the Barriss in the pit and resists the urge to jump in there and drag her out; one wrong move in here and Luminara will end up lobotomizing Barriss, and herself. Kayip laughs and returns to her spot at the edge of the pit.

"Hey, keep digging! We must do our duty, even if it's hard."

"Even if it's hard," the other Barriss echoes in monotone. The shovel scrapes once more against the rock.

TAP TAP.

There's another Bacta tank that's covered up with a tarp. Luminara watches it to make sure she isn't hearing things.

TAP TAP.

Luminara picks her way across the mess and pulls at the ropes keeping the tarp into place. The tarp falls away, revealing yet another Barriss—this one wearing healer scrubs—trapped in the otherwise empty tank.

"Master Unduli?" the healer asks, her mouth slightly agape. "You're here?"

"I'm here."

"An incredibly risky move, but one that I appreciate nonetheless. Please let me out. I've been locked in here for far too long."

Luminara presses a couple buttons on the tank control pad to open the top and helps the Healer climb out.

"Thank you," Healer says.

"Are you the real Barriss?" Luminara asks.

Healer hesitates. "Yes and no. We're all part of the real Barriss. Otherwise, my incarceration in that tank wouldn't have mattered. Please excuse me, Master." Healer drops into a brief curtsy before she sweeps past Luminara and across the medical center. Luminara follows her.

"Why does she dig with a shovel? Surely, there are better tools she could use?"

"It is of my opinion that no one gave us the proper tools with which to cope with the Clone Wars. Forgive me, Master. I did not mean to be flippant with you," Healer adds on. She might be distracted by Kayip, who snarls at the both of them as soon as they draw near enough.

"Down, girl," Healer says. Luminara stops in her tracks, having never heard Barriss talk like that before. "Go away."

"No one tells me what to do."

"Go away. Now," Healer repeats. "Or I swear I will lock you in the Bacta Tank."

"Fine!" Kayip yells. She steps past Healer, bumping shoulders hard with her as she goes. She pauses when she comes across Luminara.

"You think I was the one who locked her in that tank?"

"I do," Luminara says.

Kayip gives a cruel chuckle. "I had nothing to do with that." She points at Healer, who stiffens. "She was the one who said to get help, that it was too hard, that she should defect from the Order. But Barriss didn't like that, so she was the one who locked her up."

"Kayip, stop," Healer says.

"Why should I? Look around, Master. This is your handiwork."

"Enough!" Healer shoves Kayip. "Get. Out. I will not tell you again."

"Fine." Kayip turns and walks further into the medical center. "You know it's too late, right?" She shouts at them over her shoulder. "Barriss, her mind, it's mine."

"Ugh, Force give me strength," Healer covers her face with a hand.

SCREECH.

Barriss is still in the pit, trying in vain to dig that hole. Healer sighs.

"Please wait here, Master. Whatever I say to myself is for me alone."

Luminara has to think about the grammar of that sentence for a moment, but nods. "Of course, Padawan."

Healer walks out to the pit, then jumps in with Barriss. She pulls Barriss into a one-armed hug and whispers in her ear. She whispers for a long time, probably because Barriss shakes her head a couple times and makes as if to push Healer away. When Healer finally steps back, she leaves Barriss a hunched wreck.

"Let the shovel go," Healer says. Barriss doesn't move, but there's a thud. Healer nods, satisfied, and climbs out of the pit, staining her scrubs with dirt. She crouches down at the edge of the pit and offers her hand.

"Come."

Barriss hesitates, then takes Healer's hand. She pulls her out of the pit, and Barriss sits down on an upturned crash cart. She still looks thoroughly dejected. Healer returns to Luminara.

"Thank you, Master. I sense that my mind-scape is about to change drastically. If you linger here, it'll be very dangerous for you."

"Will you be alright?" Luminara asks. Healer looks away, thinking.

"Eventually, I think. It'll take a lot of hard work. Goodbye, Master Unduli. I doubt we'll meet again like this."

A black tunnel closes in on Luminara and she is falling through darkness until she ends up back in the warehouse. Barriss lies face down on the floor before her, still lost in oblivion. Luminara checks her chrono and finds that only a scant half hour has passed since Barriss barged into the warehouse. She doesn't know if what she's done will work; there aren't many Jedi mind healing techniques for a reason, but since the cold no longer presses against them, Luminara decides to take that as a good sign.

Luminara turns Barriss over so that she lies on her back instead. Minutes pass.

BOOM. Luminara looks up, but her view of the Jedi Temple is obscured by the warehouse roof. If her guess is correct, then Obi-Wan and Anakin have been fighting the Sith Lord for a little under an hour now. She's tempted to go help, but she isn't about to abandon Barriss in a warehouse.

Eventually, Barriss sits up, facing away from Luminara, and crumples in on herself. From this angle, Barriss's rail-thin appearance is put on display, and Luminara wonders if she's been eating. Probably not, because of that injury in her throat.

"Barriss?" She asks. "Are you alright?"

"No, Master Unduli. I'm not," Barriss says without turning around. Her breath hitches. "Maybe better than before. It's hard to tell; everything's all jumbled up, but the screaming…the screaming is gone." Barriss hesitates, then says, "it's still not okay."

"Barriss…."

"It's still not okay. I have done so many terrible things. I have to make it right." Guilt and remorse press against Luminara's skin, so thick and heavily that she could drown in it. If something isn't done, Barriss really might drown in it. She seems to know this, because she jumps to her feet and summons her lightsaber from Luminara's belt, then runs off towards the Jedi Temple.

"Barriss!" Luminara chases Barriss down the length of the warehouse. "Don't! The Emperor will kill you!"

Barriss glances over her shoulder at Luminara. "Then I will finally have paid for my crimes." She flings open the doors and runs out into the sunlight with Luminara on her heels.

* * *

Note Bene: The original chapter was so damn long that I had to chop it in half. I honestly didn't expect it to be this long, and I'm still freaking out about it. These past couple chapters hurt my heart, and I'm the one writing this fic, so I can't imagine having to read it.

I feel so much secondhand exhaustion from these characters. They've been through a lot and I…I just wanna rest. So I'm gonna sleep for a whole goddamn week, and I'll see you when I wake up, okay? Okay. Please leave feedback! Be safe out there, readers.


	18. Rumble

Ahsoka zooms through Coruscant towards the remains of the Jedi Temple on a sliced hoverbike. The wind whistles past her montrals and pulls at the collar of her shirt. When passerby see her coming, they step aside with practiced ease, thinking her to be a courier, or a messenger. They're everywhere in Coruscant, and it isn't uncommon to see someone frantically zipping around either on foot or by speeder.

The Jedi Temple used to be a warm beacon in the Force, but after the Purge, became similar to an empty fireplace. Now, it's akin to a freezer and Ahsoka knows that Sidious has turned it into a Sith Shrine.

Like before, Ahsoka doesn't go in through the front, as it's swarming with troopers. She also isn't going in through the back, as the Force is warning her away from the warehouses. That leaves the roof. Ahsoka drives up the steep walls of the Jedi Temple until the slope is too much, then she Force Jumps off the bike the rest of the way up.

"Oof!" Ahsoka rolls on the landing to keep herself from breaking a leg. She stands up, ready to fight, but the training grounds are deserted.

BOOM.

The Jedi Temple rocks beneath her feet, and Ahsoka curses. The troopers must be trying to get into the Temple to help Sidious. She opens up a door with the Force and makes her way down through the Temple. There are no more bodies, and the bloodstains have been cleaned up. Even the cracks and blaster bolt burns in the walls and floor have been retouched and filled in, and whatever can't be fixed has been covered with red and black drapes.

It can't hide the stain of death that permeates the entire building.

Ahsoka shivers. Even if they defeat Sidious and rebuild the Jedi Order, there's no way the Order's moving back in here. Too much has happened in this place, too much death. This place has become a tomb.

Ahsoka follows the Force through the Temple until she finds evidence of a battle. Lightsaber cuts in the walls still have glowing embers in them, and Ahsoka's montrals pick up the hiss and crackle of lightsaber blades off in the distance. Ahsoka follows the sounds to an enormous chamber.

As soon as she steps in the chamber her boots sink into ankle-deep mud. There's an entire swamp enclosed in this chamber, complete with the stifling heat, insects, and the sounds of fauna. The trees are so thick that Ahsoka can barely make out the gray metal panels of the surrounding chamber. She breaths in deep through her nose, her mouth slightly open to better taste the air. Instead of the sulfur she expects, she smells dust, and machine lubricant. There's also the smell of fire.

Ahsoka gropes a nearby tree trunk until she feels something give, then pulls the bark away to uncover a panel of buttons. She presses a couple of these buttons and hopes that they're the right ones.

The holograms falter, revealing metal columns, platforms, and ramps littering the chamber like an obstacle course. All of these pieces begin moving, either sinking to disappear beneath trap doors in the walls and floor, or sliding along to take up another place in the room. Still other things appear from behind the trap doors in ceaseless motion.

The haze of the swamp hasn't gone away, and Ahsoka realizes that it's smoke from the debris littering the chamber. Panels, cubes, and pillars have been ripped from the walls and thrown around. They lay useless and sparking on the floor. A few moving parts bump into them and move them out of the way. Lightsaber slashes mark the surfaces here and there.

In the distance, Ahsoka sees three figures leaping from floating platform to platform, one with a red lightsaber, the other two with blue.

Darth Sidious, despite the years of age taking a toll on his body, is inhumanly fast, but Anakin and Obi-Wan keep up with him without any sign of trouble. Their lightsaber blades are mere blurs to Ahsoka, whose heart sinks into her stomach. She might be in over her head. Waves of frigid cold shoot right through Ahsoka's body, bringing with them a pang of terror. It takes her a moment to unstick her feet from the floor so that she can move around again.

Plan, plan, what is the plan? Ahsoka bites her lip as she thinks. She barged in here wanting to help, but hadn't thought of what she'd do once she got here.

Here goes. Ahsoka sucks in a breath and reaches out with the Force to trip Sidious. It works—it works? Of course it worked—Sidious stumbles off of his platform with a shout and grabs onto the edge, making it sag from his weight.

"Now, Anakin!" Obi-Wan shouts. He and Anakin jump at Sidious, their lightsabers at the ready.

CRACKOOM.

Sidious sends Force Lightning at them both, throwing them back. Anakin lands on the floor, stunned, and Obi-Wan goes sailing clear to the other end of the chamber, where he hits the wall and tumbles down onto a plateau. Sidious cackles and swings himself to a lower platform. He jumps to Obi-Wan, his lightsaber raised high.

Ahsoka gasps and runs, activating her lightsabers as she goes. She pulls the Force into herself against the growing chill and uses It to propel herself forward faster than she's ever gone before. She leaps and before she knows it, she's in blade-lock with Sidious over Obi-Wan's prone body.

The image of a Loth-cat hissing at an enormous nexu comes to mind.

"Ahsoka!" Anakin gazes up at them, his blue eyes wide with terror and disbelief. "What are you doing here?!"

Ahsoka stares over the crossed lightsaber blades at Sidious's crooked, yellow smile and instinctively pulls on the Force, letting it fill her mind and spark in her nerves. There's no time to think, or to plan. She just feels and goes.

Sidious pulls away and slashes at her head. Ahsoka raises her shoto to block and lashes out in a counter attack, but soon moves to block again. Sidious was intimidating to watch, so it's not like she wasn't prepared, but as Ahsoka blocks and blocks and blocks some more, she finds that she vastly underestimated just how absolutely karked she is for getting into a fight with Darth kriffing Sidious. He's moving so fast that she doesn't dare blink for fear of missing something, but damn if he isn't quite fast enough to bypass Ahsoka's defense while she's drunk on the Force.

It's still overwhelming though. Even with her blocks, Sidious's blade comes close enough for her to feel the searing heat of the plasma against her lekku. Ahsoka ducks to avoid a vicious slash at her head, and while she's crouched, she Force Punches Sidious, who folds in half and leaps to a pillar that juts horizontally from the wall.

Anakin jumps onto the platform next to Ahsoka and crouches down to feel Obi-Wan's pulse. "Ahsoka, did you just Force Punch Sidious in the dick?"

"I'm sorry, okay? I panicked," Ahsoka says.

"You insignificant, primeval grub!" Sidious rages, still a little hunched over. "I was willing to spare your life! But now, now I'm going to mount your head on my wall!"

CRACK.

Anakin crushes the pillar with the Force, making Sidious jump to keep from falling.

"Pick on someone your own size," he yells. "Ahsoka, you shouldn't have come!"

"I won't leave you. Not this time."

"Yes, you will!" Anakin activates his lightsaber once more. "Run! And take Obi-Wan with you!"

Ahsoka rolls her eyes, but deactivates her lightsabers and drops down to the floor anyway. She floats Obi-Wan towards her with the Force, then takes his body over to the wide floor tile right next to the door. It's the only unmoving piece in the entire room, and she places Obi-Wan here and checks his pulse. He's still alive.

"Master Kenobi?" Ahsoka shakes his shoulder. "Wake up."

Obi-Wan groans and holds his head. "I feel like I've been hit by a freight speeder."

"You were," Ahsoka says. "License plate six-six-six, Senth Isk Thresh."

"Oh, thank you, Ahsoka. Ahsoka!" Obi-Wan sits up and stares at her in terror. "You shouldn't be here!"

Ahsoka offers her hand and pulls Obi-Wan to his feet. "Anakin could use some help." The two of them glance towards the other end of the chamber, where Anakin is busy fighting Sidious.

"You lied to me!" Anakin rages as he sends a cold pulse throughout the chamber. Ahsoka ducks her head. "How could you do that? I trusted you!"

At first, Ahsoka attributed the cold to Sidious, but she realizes that not all of it could come from just one person. Obi-Wan takes his lightsaber in hand once more. He's got a slight limp, but he hides it well and rejoins the fight without any trouble.

Anakin is a whirlwind of furious motion, his lightsaber so fast it looks like he has two of them. Obi-Wan's movements, on the other hand, are deceptively slow. Every swing of his lightsaber looks as if it won't arrive in time to block, but it somehow does. It's bait, really, meant to entice Sidious to attack him and leave himself open to Anakin's wrath.

It's also cocky. Ahsoka watches with her mouth slightly ajar.

"Snap out of it, Anakin!" Obi-Wan yells. "He's trying to break your focus."

Sidious grins that awful grin. "I'm merely trying to expand Anakin's horizons, Master Jedi. He will be more powerful than either of us could ever hope to be."

"I'm right here!" Anakin swipes at Sidious with his lightsaber, making him jump back.

BOOM. The chamber shakes, and the Force pulls at all four of them. Ahsoka turns towards the door of the chamber, and even the others pause in their fight.

They realize that the troopers have broken through the front doors. Sidious cackles. Ahsoka draws upon the Force like a sponge on water and sprints to the door.

"I'll stop them! You take care of the Emperor!"

"Ahsoka, no!" Anakin shouts.

"There's too many of them, they'll overwhelm you!" Obi-Wan shouts too, but Ahsoka runs out the door anyway. It slides shut behind her and she slices through the door pad with a lightsaber, locking it. She runs down the hallway to the entrance hall, moving so fast she might as well be flying.

* * *

The main entrance to the Jedi Temple is a grand sight, all marble and guided metal. Now however, it's a ruinous mess. The outer row of pillars have been cut down by lightsaber and piled high to create a barrier too tall for any trooper or vehicle to get over, and the troopers have been trying to blast through them ever since. Ahsoka skids to a stop, breathing lightly.

A few troopers are already there, and more are climbing over the half-demolished barrier. They stare at Ahsoka for a moment before they open fire.

Ahsoka swears in Mando'a and brings out her lightsabers to deflect the blaster bolts. A couple troopers go down immediately and the others hide behind a pillar to regroup.

"Hah!" Ahsoka lifts her pinkies and Force Pushes several troopers up and over the barrier. They scream as they fall out of sight and thankfully, no other troopers appear over the barricade, although there's a lot of yelling coming from the other side. She deactivates her lightsabers and ducks behind a different pillar.

"Where'd she go?" a trooper asks. His voice, amplified by his helmet, echoes around the hall.

"I don't know. We should look," another trooper says. They cautiously make their way to where they last saw her and in their single-minded focus, they miss Ahsoka as she slips off to the side and circles around them. Ahsoka shakes her head in amazement as she sneaks up behind them. The clone troopers may have plenty experience fighting with Jedi, but against them? One night of slaughter hardly counts.

She also supposes that it doesn't help how she's stalking them as if they were nothing more than a couple thimiars. Ahsoka lifts her hands and slams their helmets together with the Force. They crumple together in a heap and Ahsoka lifts them up and tosses them up and over the barrier along with the other felled troopers.

When she's done, she dusts off her hands and eyes the remaining pillars around her with some trepidation. Each pillar is hundreds of feet tall and maybe fifty feet across. The metal casings hide solid stone.

"No way," Ahsoka whispers. She's moved some impressive things before, but this? Impossible. Unlike the entrance to the Ilum Temple, the pillars aren't designed to move.

"Have you ever felled a tree?"

Ahsoka whirls around only to see Luminara, who breathes lightly as if she's run all the way here. Ahsoka lowers her lightsabers.

"Not a small tree, but the giant ones you find on Endor," Luminara says. She gestures to the nearest pillar. "It'll be like that."

BOOM. Ahsoka flinches as the troopers set off another explosive, spraying debris everywhere. Luminara raises a hand and swats away a burning chuck of rock as if it were a fly.

"Master, taking the pillar down will be the easy part. How are we going to put it on the barrier?"

Luminara's eyebrows go up, and she looks Ahsoka up and down. "Come now, Ahsoka. Are you Force-sensitive or not?"

Ahsoka chuckles. "Ha ha! You almost got me there, Master."

"I'm very serious. If Obi-Wan and Anakin can do it, then so can we."

"You might be underestimating Anakin there," Ahsoka says. If a sentient's command over the Force could be quantified, most of them would be puddles. They've got enough of the Force to exist, but not to do anything else. Younglings and padawans would be something like swimming pools, and trained Force-sensitives like Jedi knights and masters would be akin to lakes. Vast, spacious lakes. And then you have people like Anakin walking around, who are more like entire seas.

"Desperation is a powerful motivator, and I see no other alternative," Luminara says. She readies her lightsaber. "Are we doing this, or not?"

"Okay." Ahsoka joins Luminara at the base of the nearest pillar and takes up her lightsabers. "Ready?"

"Ready."

The both of them attack the base of the pillar, cutting out chunks of stone and using the Force to clear them out. They banish these chunks over the barrier and into the troopers outside, keeping them from climbing over. Ahsoka moves so much stone that she works up a sweat. The front and back of her shirt is soaked. Chop, pull, banish. Chop, pull, banish. When the wedge they're creating reaches a little over halfway through the base, Luminara holds up a hand for them to stop.

"Listen," she says, breathless. The pillar groans ominously above them.

"It's falling," Ahsoka says.

"Not yet, but it's starting to shift." Luminara runs out to the middle of the entrance hall, behind the area where the pillar will fall. "Cut through the last part."

Ahsoka adjusts the length of her lightsaber and runs out and around the pillar, cutting through the rest of it as fast as she can. Beads of perspiration form on her forehead and she can't help but yell.

The pillar wobbles and begins to tilt. Ahsoka readjusts her lightsaber length again and runs out to join Luminara in the middle of the hall.

The both of them raise their hands and summon an incredible amount of Force to catch the pillar. If it hits the ground hard enough, it'll break into pieces and won't do any good at all. Ahsoka yells and her knees hit the floor under the strain.

And yet the pillar keeps falling, falling, falling. Maybe it's getting slower, but it still won't be enough. Ahsoka closes her eyes in order to better focus. She senses a third person who reaches out with the Force and together, the three of them manage to catch the pillar before it hits the ground.

"Throw it!" Luminara yells. The three of them heave and the pillar crashes lengthwise against the barrier, sealing it off against the trooper army once more. The troopers shout and curse in Mando'a.

"Sir, we don't have enough bombs to cut through that!" A trooper shouts.

"Then go get some more!"

Ahsoka opens her eyes so that she can stare at her and Luminara's handiwork. The pillar seals the break in the barrier perfectly. Luminara reaches into her cloak with a shaking hand and takes out a handkerchief to wipe her face.

"I severely underestimated Anakin."

"Yeah, but that's okay. Someone helped us out." Ahsoka turns to thank the mysterious third person and instead sees Barriss. Her smile fades from her face and she stands up.

"Kayip."

Barriss tries to keep eye contact with Ahsoka, but can't. She ends up glancing back and forth between Ahsoka and the floor.

"Ahsoka." Luminara's hand hovers above her lightsaber. "Don't."

Ahsoka turns and stares at Luminara in astonishment and a little bit of betrayal. "Have you lost your mind? She's Sith."

"I've turned her. "

Ahsoka gives a short bark of humorless laughter. "That is the worst joke."

"It's true!"

"SHE TORTURED RIYO!" Ahsoka shouts, her teeth bared. Her emotions leak into the Force like an oil slick in the ocean. Luminara doesn't move, but Barriss flinches and steps back.

"She was ready to kill her. You didn't see Riyo in that cell. If you did, you wouldn't stop me."

"I will not stand idly by while you murder my padawan. Ahsoka, please! Don't fight Barriss, it reeks too strongly of revenge. It's not the Jedi way."

Ahsoka takes her lightsabers in her hands. "I am no Jedi, and neither is she." She points her lightsaber at Barriss. "I told you, Master Unduli. I told you that the next time we met, it would be her or me." Ahsoka turns to find that she's pointing at empty space. "Where'd she go?"

The tiniest movement on the edges of her vision marks Barriss's location. She's running through the main entryway to the rest of temple. Ahsoka's vision narrows down to just Barriss and a small voice in her head whispers: prey.

Ahsoka breaks into a dead run. Luminara takes off after her a split second later, but cannot catch up. Barriss looks over her shoulder at them and keeps running.

"FIGHT ME, KAYIP!"

But it only seems to urge Barriss to run faster. Ahsoka raises a couple fingers off her lightsaber handles and summons a couple rocks from the floor. She turns around and whips them back at Luminara.

Luminara dodges the first rock with a shout, and slices through the second with her lightsaber. She lifts her lightsaber up, ready for Ahsoka's attack, but it never comes.

Ahsoka is nowhere to be found.

"Master!" Barriss skids to a stop and rushes up to Luminara, but she holds up a hand to stay her concern.

"Did you see where she went?"

"No." Barriss closes her eyes. "She's blocked off our Force Bond. I can't sense her."

"Neither can I. It seems that Ahsoka's learned a trick or two from her new friends."

CRACK.

The both of them flinch as a stone smashes into a nearby pillar. Barriss, who has seen and used this tactic before, turns around to block an attack from behind.

CRACK, BOOM. More stones fly through the air at them, missing them by a couple feet.

"By the Force, she's toying with us," Luminara says. "Urk!"

While the two Mirialans are distracted by the stones, Ahsoka slips from behind a pillar to Luminara and winds her arms around her neck in a rear naked choke. Luminara is still a little taller than Ahsoka, so in order to compensate, Ahsoka kicks at her calves. Luminara's knees give out and she drops down enough for Ahsoka's hold to tighten.

Luminara's lightsaber slips from her hand and skitters over the floor, useless.

"Master!" Barriss darts forward, but Ahsoka moves back, dragging Luminara with her. Luminara gasps for air and claws at Ahsoka's arms, but it does nothing. When she claws at Ahsoka's face instead, Ahsoka just hides her face behind Luminara's head.

"Let her go! Let her go!" Barriss tries to get around Luminara at Ahsoka, but Ahsoka moves around, keeping Luminara between them as a living shield. She also keeps moving back, to make sure that Luminara doesn't regain her footing.

Luminara goes limp, her hands falling to her sides. Barriss gasps as Ahsoka eases out of the choke and carefully lays Luminara on the floor.

"How could you do that?" Barriss asks, her hand over her lightsaber. "You hurt her!"

"She's alive, and she's whole, which is more than what I can say about any of your victims," Ahsoka says. "I don't know what you've done to Master Unduli to make her act like this, but I know that she's still a good sentient. She shouldn't have to be awake for what's going to happen next." Ahsoka looks up at Barriss.

"She shouldn't have to watch me kill you."

One blink, and Barriss has barely gotten her lightsaber out to block both of Ahsoka's. On the other side of the blade lock, Ahsoka's face is a study in cool, unwavering resolve. The Force, on the other hand, is overflowing with righteous fury deep enough to drown in. It washes around the both of them and leaves Barriss breathless.

"You don't deserve that lightsaber," Ahsoka says. She breaks the lock and slashes at Barriss's head.

Barriss blocks and blocks and blocks some more. Ahsoka is relentless, and Barriss finds herself retreating under her ceaseless attacks.

"I'm sorry!" she shouts. "You were right! You were right about everything. I see that now."

Ahsoka's stoic demeanor cracks as she snarls. "I don't want your apologies! People are dead because of you."

"Killing me won't bring them back!"

"No, but it might bring them some peace. Or have you not realized how cold this place is yet?" Ahsoka drops the Force barrier shielding her from the haunted aura of the temple, then blasts her Force Bond with Barriss wide open so that she will feel what she feels. The effect is akin to falling through the surface of a frozen pond. Barriss gasps and wobbles, but manages to stay standing. The floor of the temple is sticky on her boot soles. The air is stifling. Barriss can barely move around while the Force is so maliciously focused on her like this. It takes everything in her to focus enough to deflect all of Ahsoka's attacks, and she wonders if Ahsoka's being just as hindered as she is.

She wonders if she should be fighting Ahsoka at all.

POW.

Ahsoka punches Barriss in the face, and she goes down with blood streaming from her nose. Her eyes tear up, blurring her vision so that she can't see anything but blue and white shapes. She tucks her nose in the crook of her elbow and lifts her lightsaber up against Ahsoka, who stands over her and continues to attack. Their blades get close enough to Barriss's face for her to feel the heat from the plasma.

The jabs that she deflects send the points of Ahsoka's lightsabers into the floor on either side of her body and head, creating red-hot holes and slash marks. Before long, the entire floor around her is carved up.

Ahsoka switches the grip on her lightsabers and attacks with her shoto, and when Barriss blocks, it's in the perfect position for her to kick her lightsaber right out of her hand. It skitters across the floor and is lost in the gloom of the empty temple. Ahsoka lifts her lightsabers high, but Barriss sits up and grabs the back of Ahsoka's knee with one hand and pulls. Her other hand pushes against Ahsoka's stomach and Ahsoka goes down with a shout.

In order to keep her head from hitting the floor, Ahsoka lets go of her lightsabers so her hands can smack against the floor and soften her landing. The beams of light go out as they clatter over the floor and out of reach. Ahsoka growls in frustration. Her hands grab onto the one Barriss has over her stomach and pulls it up to her neck. Her leg, the one Barriss isn't holding, goes up and over Barriss's head and rests against her neck.

Barriss's eyes widen. She reaches around the leg she has under her arm and presses a knuckle into a nerve point in the inner thigh. Ahsoka hisses and her hold loosens enough for Barriss to yank her hand free of her grip. She pushes Ahsoka off of her and scrambles to her feet, panting.

She looks around for her lightsaber, but can't find it. But she does see one of Ahsoka's lightsabers and she summons that instead.

SHVOOM.

It's the shoto. Barriss groans, but adjusts the length of the blade anyway. She wipes her face on her sleeve as Ahsoka picks up her main lightsaber and summons Barriss's out from the darkness.

"Ahsoka, stop! Please. I don't want to fight you."

"Too late! Way too late," Ahsoka yells. "You don't deserve to live."

"No, I deserve to suffer for what I've done, and I can't do that if I'm dead. I need to make things right! I need to at least try."

"You talk a lot of poodoo, Kayip."

"I suppose you're right. I should just show you." Barriss turns the lightsaber off, turns, and runs as fast as she possibly can into the Temple. Ahsoka growls and follows her.

* * *

The door to the holochamber has been sealed shut. Barriss slashes a quick 'x' in the door, then lets the Force well up in her. She unleashes It on the door, warping it and creating a hole large enough for her to slip through.

"Oof!" She lands on the floor and does a roll to keep from twisting an ankle. Anakin and Obi-Wan are still fighting Sidious. If they're tired, then they're doing a very good job of hiding it.

BOOM.

Barriss hurries to get away from the door as it folds in on itself. Ahsoka climbs through and lands catlike on her feet. Instead of waiting for her to attack, Barriss launches herself through the air towards the fight. She lands on a platform near them and straightens up with her borrowed lightsaber in hand.

"Kayip!" Ahsoka yells. She jumps too, onto a nearby ledge.

The three men pause in their fight and turn to them.

"Barriss?" Obi-Wan asks. Anakin's nose wrinkles in disgust.

"Barriss." Interesting how he can make her name sound like the most vile swear word in the galaxy.

Sidious, on the other hand, smiles at her. "Ah, Kayip! Impeccable timing, my dear. Help me kill these Jedi."

Barriss ignites Ahsoka's shoto, washing herself in white light. Anakin's eyes widen in recognition. Before Barriss can second guess herself, she leaps across the gap to attack Sidious.

"Traitor! Ungrateful whelp," Sidious yells as he defends against the onslaught. Obi-Wan only gapes for a second before he rushes forward to help. Ahsoka and Anakin, however, stare at the debacle in confusion.

"Anakin!" Obi-Wan shouts. "You can join in at any time now!"

Sidious plants a solid front kick into Barriss's stomach, sending her across the chamber. Ahsoka turns to follow her progress the way a Loth-cat watches a flying bird, then races towards her. Barriss lands in a heap and tries to get up, but Ahsoka kicks her over onto her back.

Barriss tries to scoot back, but Ahsoka just stalks closer. She can only raise her hands in surrender. "Ahsoka, please."

"Shut up."

"I'm not Kayip, that's not my name. Please just look. Just look at me."

"SHUT UP!"

Ahsoka glares at Barriss and tightens her grip on her lightsabers. Barriss looks up at her and sees the will of the Force bearing down on her. And of course It would manifest in Ahsoka. Why should the Force spare her any bit of cruelty in the end?

Barriss closes her eyes and braces herself. Ahsoka raises her lightsabers high and brings them down with a feral scream. She slashes again and again and again. When she is done, she steps away with a sob.

She leaves Barriss alive and untouched. Barriss lies on the floor, pale and shaking, and on either side of her are the long, burnt marks of Ahsoka's temper.

"Damn it," Ahsoka whispers as she wipes her face. "This does not mean I forgive you."

"Y-yes," Barriss whispers. She stares up at the ceiling, still comprehending what has happened. Ahsoka drops Barriss's lightsaber onto the floor, then summons her shoto back.

"Don't kark this up."

BOOM.

The duel between the three men has devolved into a Force fight. They rip up pieces of the holochamber and throw them at each other right before they jump to avoid the pieces sent at them. Sidious laughs, the sound high-pitched and sickly.

"Come now, Anakin. Is that the best you can do?"

CRACK.

He's blindsided by a giant sphere, which hits him as hard as a zooming freight speeder. Luminara comes out to join Anakin and Obi-Wan in the middle of the room, her hands up in a familiar stance.

The sphere groans as it slows to a stop just before it hits the wall, then begins spinning. Anakin and Luminara step back and jump out of the way as it's sent back at them. It hits the floor hard enough to break the entire mechanism of the holochamber.

As soon as the sphere hits the floor, Ahsoka and Barriss leap at Sidious to catch him off guard.

"NO!" All three of the adults yell, but even as they move to interfere, Ahsoka and Barriss fight as a united front, covering each other's openings and making room for the other to attack. Between the two of them, Sidious's speed is almost manageable, and they even hold their own for a few precious seconds.

"You think killing me will redeem you, Kayip?" Sidious asks. "You think that you can blame me for all of your wrongdoings? Because it doesn't work that way. Your soul belongs to the Dark Side, and not even your precious Jedi master can save you.

"And you, Togruta, do you really think that killing me will save Skywalker from the Dark Side? No matter what you do, no matter what you say, he will fall. He's Sith through and through."

"Liar!" Ahsoka bares her teeth, but Barriss hesitates, opening herself up to attack.

Before Sidious can cut her down, both of them are summoned away from him by Obi-Wan. They slide over the floor a little before they come to a stop at his feet.

"Sit, you two," Obi-Wan levels a severe glare at them as he runs to Sidious.

"Stay," Luminara adds. She and Anakin follow Obi-Wan and the three of them attack Sidious at once. The difference between them and their apprentices is immediately apparent. Compared to them, Ahsoka and Barriss seem to have been swimming in mud.

"So you're Kayip's Jedi master? How marvelous," Sidious says.

Luminara dodges a slash that almost takes off part of her headdress and swipes low at Sidious's knees. "She is my apprentice, not yours."

"Alas, you're wrong, Master Jedi. Kayip is mine, no matter what she may think. You may disagree, but it will be difficult for you to argue after you are dead. Ah yes, maybe that is what I should do. It would be such a waste to kill you, Anakin, but perhaps it's for the best. I will kill you all and take the girls for myself."

Anakin's next attack is slightly more ferocious than usual, and Sidious's smile is wiped off his face. Together, the three Jedi back Sidious into the wall, but before they can finish him, Sidious summons a second lightsaber from the inside of his sleeve. He lands a glancing cut on the outside of Luminara's arm and catches Anakin and Obi-Wan's blades in a lock.

Luminara claps a hand over her wound and hisses. Sidious kicks Anakin away and slashes at her, intending to cleave her in two, but is blocked by Barriss, who pushes Luminara out of the way so that she and Ahsoka can join the fight.

Ahsoka and Barriss can only play continuous defense against one of Sidious's blades while he defends against Obi-Wan with the other. If it weren't so frightening, the amount of skill that Sidious commands would be impressive.

Sidious cackles. "Did you see, Kayip? Your precious Jedi Master cannot protect you when she cannot even protect herself. I will be forced to kill her, and your Togruta friend too."

Despair leaks into the Force around Barriss and her technique suffers for it. Sidious Force Pushes Obi-Wan away and catches Barriss's and Ahsoka's lightsabers in two separate blade locks.

"There is one way you can save them, Kayip. You can save them all."

"Oof!" Obi-Wan hits Anakin in the chest, toppling him over once more.

"He's lying, Barriss!" Luminara shouts. "He's not planning on letting anyone leave this place alive."

Barriss stares up at Sidious with anxiety written over her face, her eyes filled with blue and red light.

"Join me, Kayip."

Barriss clenches her jaw. "That's not my name. Not anymore. Never again." She twirls her lightsaber and slashes up, slicing through Sidious's forearm and rendering one of his lightsabers in two.

Sidious bellows in pain and swings his remaining lightsaber down, opening Barriss across from shoulder to hip. He also releases Force Lightning at both Barriss and Ahsoka, blasting them clear across the chamber so that he can regroup. Luminara shouts and moves to catch Barriss.

Barriss lands in a smoking heap and doesn't get up. Ahsoka skids across the floor and comes to a stop on her side right before a pile of wrecked holochamber pieces. She fights to keep her eyes open against the pain coursing through her veins, dimly aware of how she's sizzling from electricity. Anakin detangles himself from Obi-Wan and rushes at Sidious.

Ahsoka mutters Mando'a curses under her breath as she staggers to her feet. "Barriss," she whispers. The other girl lies unmoving a little ways away and something in Ahsoka's chest tightens. "No."

Luminara rushes to Barriss's side and kneels next to her, her face full of anguish.

"Barriss." Luminara turns her padawan over so that she lays on her back. Her torso is a smoky ruin, but she doesn't look at that and instead focuses on Barriss's face. Barriss is struggling to breathe, and judging by the size of her pupils, she's fading.

"Master," Barriss whispers. Luminara takes her hand.

"I'm here, Padawan."

All the tension leaks out of Barriss's body.

"It's cold."

Luminara unclasps the cloak from around her shoulders and drapes it over Barriss, making sure not to let go of her hand. Barriss has always been thin, but Luminara realizes that what little baby fat that she once had has melted away, leaving behind smooth planes and angles in her face. Barriss grew up, and Luminara didn't even notice.

"Master," Barriss says again.

"What is it?" There's a tremor in Luminara's voice.

"I'm so tired."

Luminara squeezes Barriss's hand. "Then rest, Padawan. Rest."

Barriss closes her eyes and her chest settles. Luminara cuts off a sob and holds a couple fingers to Barriss's neck. Her eyes widen.

A shadow falls over her, and she looks up to see a rumpled Obi-Wan standing before her. An ugly bruise is purpling over his right cheek bone and tufts of his beard go every which way.

"Luminara?" He asks. "What is it? Is Barriss dead?"

"She's in a healing trance," Luminara says. "She put herself in a trance."

"Then there is still time to save her. You must go."

Luminara looks past him at Sidious, who grits his teeth as he engages Anakin with his remaining lightsaber. Obi-Wan crouches, blocking her view.

"Go," he says, softer this time. "We can handle it from here."

Luminara nods, then scoops Barriss up in her arms and leaves the chamber. Obi-Wan straightens up and turns to Ahsoka, who's still reeling from Sidious's Force Lightning.

BOOM.

Anakin flops face-down on the floor between them and skids a little. "Ugh. Hey, Snips. Obi-Wan."

"Great," Obi-Wan says as he helps Anakin up. "Now we can all die together."

Sidious observes the remaining Jedi in the room with a calmness that doesn't befit a man who's just had his hand chopped off. Everyone correctly guesses that it's because he's using his pain to focus the Dark Side within himself.

Ahsoka groans. It's not fair how they're one step closer to killing this man, and yet somehow further away then where they started. Sidious points his lightsaber at her.

"You're next, young one," Sidious says, his voice gritty.

Anakin steps in front of her and readies his lightsaber. "You're gonna have to get through me first."

"And me," Obi-Wan says.

"Do you know what will happen if you kill me?" Sidious asks Anakin. "I will be vindicated. The Jedi will be hunted like dogs throughout the galaxy with a fervor never seen before. Your padawan will die, your precious master will die, and your family will die."

It's not as if they all haven't seen this trick before, but even now it's convincing as hell. Through their Force Bond, Ahsoka feels cold fear grip Anakin and shivers. She silently prays for him to fight it, for him to realize that Sidious is lying.

"Join me, Anakin. Learn the power of the Dark Side. Bring peace to the Galaxy. Protect the ones you love," Sidious says.

"Don't listen to him, Anakin," Obi-Wan says. "You don't know that will happen. No one can know that for sure. The protests alone disprove that."

Ahsoka, Anakin, and Obi-Wan walk over the uneven, debris-strewn floor until they reach Sidious. Ahsoka summons her lightsabers back into her hands and activates them.

"Padmé can't follow you into the Dark," Ahsoka whispers, and Anakin stiffens with realization. "She won't. Remember that."

Anakin nods. "Together then."

"Together," Ahsoka and Obi-Wan say.

They descend upon Sidious, who actually begins to retreat. It's the only sign that he's actually impaired by the loss of his right hand. And yet, they still can't get through.

Ahsoka's Force Sense flares, and she leaps away in time to dodge debris that Sidious summons towards himself with the stump of his arm. He uses it as a shield against Anakin and Obi-Wan, who cut through it like butter, but it's intact long enough for him to charge up more Force Lightning. He banishes the shield at Obi-Wan and tries to shock Anakin, who blocks the lighting with his lightsaber. Ahsoka jumps back in, intending to end it, but Sidious spins around and blasts her with the Force, knocking her lightsabers out of the way. He twirls his lightsaber into a reverse grip and stabs her through the stomach.

"No!" Anakin shouts.

The first instant isn't bad. It's swamped in denial and so feels no worse than a mosquito bite. The next instant is excruciating. Ahsoka's all too aware of the burning beam of plasma lancing through her body. Sidious tries to pull the blade out, but Ahsoka brings her hand down to cradle her wound and clips the shroud emitter of Sidious's lightsaber with a white blade.

Sidious stares in surprise at the useless sparking stub of his lightsaber. He's distracted enough to drop the Force Lightning keeping Anakin at bay.

Anakin darts forward and swings down, catching Sidious in the neck. Sidious falls to the ground in two pieces, his head rolling around Anakin's feet.

Ahsoka tips over and falls onto her side, and her lightsabers fall from her hands and clatter onto the ground.

She doesn't get back up.

Anakin puts away his lightsaber and rushes to Ahsoka. There's a charred, gaping hole in the right side of her abdomen, just underneath her ribcage, and it reminds Anakin of Qui-Gon Jin's funeral and the burnt hole he had in his chest.

BOOM. Obi-Wan groans as he pushes the burnt shield off of himself, then, upon spotting Anakin, runs to his side and presses a couple fingers to the side of Ahsoka's neck.

"Ahsoka." Anakin covers her hand with his.

"She's still alive," Obi-Wan says. "Take her to the hospital! Run, Anakin! And may the Force be with you."

Anakin picks Ahsoka up in his arms and bolts out of the chamber, leaving Sidious's corpse to Obi-Wan.

Obi-Wan turns to the remains and ignites his lightsaber.

* * *

Note Bene: Yeah, Barriss lives despite all the shit she's done. There's actually an alternate version of this chapter where she dies and I went back and forth on which one to go with. I ultimately decided on this one, because "dying is easy, young man, living is harder."

If you are interested in reading the rest of Barriss's redemption arc, let me know in a comment, or a review, as soon as possible. The sooner I know that there's interest, the more motivated I'll be to write that story out for you all.


	19. Look Around, Look Around

Riyo swims in and out of consciousness, and back and forth between the Banshee and the prison cell. The only constant thing she knows is the liquid fire pulsing through her chest and down her arm, and the fever it brings to the rest of her body. The two older women with her, Asajj and an unmarked Pantoran named Lassa, hover above her: Lassa with concern, and Asajj more with morbid interest.

"Where's Ahsoka?" Riyo asks. Lassa and Asajj share a look that she should probably be able to pick up on, but that part of her brain is…somewhere else right now. Asajj rolls her eyes and lifts her wrist.

"I'll com her."

Lassa turns back to Riyo and pulls on a pair of latex gloves. "Look at me, Honey. What's your name?"

"Ri-Riyo Chuchi."

"Do you know what day it is?"

"I…no."

"Today's Primeday," Lassa says. She opens up Riyo's shirt and picks up a pair of scissors to cut away her bandages.

Riyo blinks and struggles for too long to do a simple math problem. "I've been a prisoner for five days."

"Ugh, oh Gods." Lassa wrinkles her nose as she lifts the bandages off. Too late, she pulls a surgical mask over her face. Even Asajj, who stands on the other side of the room, grimaces.

"What did Offee do? Stick a dead cat in your chest?" she asks.

"She's done worse; she's pulled my brain out my skull." Riyo's been nose-blind for a while now, so whatever it is they're smelling, it must be very bad. Asajj sneers.

"And yet you still talk."

"You seem to do just fine without a brain. Why not me too?" Riyo asks.

Lassa cackles and shoots an apologetic look over her shoulder at Asajj, who fumes.

"You're a better challenge than Ahsoka, I'll give you that. She's not answering, by the way."

"What?" Riyo asks.

"Com her master, who was he? Sky man?" Lassa asks as she cleans Riyo's wound.

"I'm not comming him," Asajj asks.

"Oh no, something's happened," Riyo mutters.

"Shut up," Asajj says, then to Lassa, "I'm not comming that man."

"The more you put it off, the longer we're stuck with this girl, and I'm not cut out to be a caretaker. Call the guy." Lassa throws yet another used-up wipe in the trash bin, sighs, and rummages through the medical kit. "Kark, we're gonna have to flush it out."

"I'm dying, aren't I?" Riyo asks.

"I'm not gonna lie to you, kiddo. It looks pretty bad. How do you feel?"

"Pretty bad." Understatement. Riyo feels like her body's being torn apart atom by atom. Lassa twists a nozzle onto a bottle of liquid Bacta, then squeezes a steady stream into her wound. The Bacta's soothing cold, and Riyo feels the overflow trickle down over the top of her shoulder and soak the back of her shirt. Lassa mops it up with a towel.

"Better?"

"A little bit."

Lassa throws away the dark purple-stained towel, then sticks a Bacta patch over the wound.

"Ahsoka and Skywalker are at the hospital," Asajj says. Riyo curses under her breath.

"Something has happened."

"Yes, the Sith are dead. We can come out of hiding."

"You can," Lassa says as she pieces Riyo's shirt back together. "I can't."

"You think a former assassin ranks lower than a pirate?" Asajj asks.

"Your victims are dead; they can't complain. I only stole from mine and they're still plenty mad at me."

"Fine," Asajj says. "I'll take her to the hospital."

"Please don't bring me to a hospital," Riyo says. "You changed my bandage, isn't that enough?"

"Oh Honey, no," Lassa says. "You'll die without a hospital."

Riyo says nothing.

"You cannot be seriously considering it," Asajj snaps. She takes Riyo's right wrist and pulls her over her shoulders in a fireman carry. Asajj doesn't have a sturdy frame, but she doesn't need a lot of strength to lift Riyo, who is tiny enough to pass as an Academy student.

Riyo doesn't struggle, but groans in exasperation. Her left arm dangles uselessly over Asajj's back.

"You guys are the worst," she says. "Zero out of ten, would not come again."

Lassa laughs.

"I'm still expecting a tip," Asajj says.

"Ah yes, a tip. Can you hand me my wallet? I seem to have left it back with all the karks I give."

Instead of dignifying that with an answer, Asajj turns to Lassa. "If you're right about your victims, then staying on this planet longer than needed puts you in danger. Droid!"

R7 beeps halfheartedly from his place in the hallway.

"Take Lassa back to the Wheel, then fly my ship back here to Coruscant," Asajj says. "I'll wait for your return in the hospital."

R7 whistles, then rolls out of sight into the cockpit. Lassa blows Asajj a kiss and gives Riyo a wave.

"See you later."

"I better," Asajj mutters.

"Thanks, Lassa," Riyo says, her voice muffled by Asajj's shoulder. They get off the ship and watch it launch, then make their way through the undercity.

"What's the deal with you and hospitals?" Asajj asks.

"My mother died in a hospital. Isn't that reason enough?" Riyo asks. Asajj doesn't say anything to that and Riyo, unwilling to talk more, closes her eyes and falls asleep.

* * *

"Ah!" Riyo's leg jerks as she wakes up. Gods, she fell asleep, and she can feel the sting of electricity arcing into her from the shock collar…wait. The intense pain of her dream fades into the steady throb of her chest. She's in a hospital room, which is quiet save for her breathing. Her left shoulder and arm are strapped in a sling. She raises her right hand and morbidly feels for the end of a thin, flexible tube that goes into her chest wound under the collar of her hospital scrubs, not unlike the tube that Ahsoka was fitted with when she was treated on Pantora.

Two IV lines lead from within her sling up to more bags, one for more Bacta, and another that Riyo guesses is pain medication, adding up to three bags in all. The swelling around her chest wound is gone and her finger's still gone too. Riyo raises her hand to look at it and finds a metal and plastic device covering the stub of her finger to keep it clean, but also to keep it from scarring over.

A humanoid woman of mixed ancestry, judging from her bright pink skin and hair, knocks on the doorframe. "Senator Chuchi?"

"Yes?" Riyo's voice is hoarse and she clears her throat and tries again. "Yes. That's me."

"I'm Dr. Bell, I'm in charge of your care while you're here." The woman comes in and takes a date pad from the slot at the foot of Riyo's bed. "Are you feeling any pain?"

"No. How long have I been out?"

"It's nine in the evening on Centaxday night," Dr. Bell says. "You've slept for more than twenty-four hours. We've got your infection under control, and it should clear up fairly soon. We've also successfully treated the electric burns from the shock collar. All that's left is your blaster bolt wound and your finger. Do you want us to clone you a replacement, or would you want a mechanical one?"

"Flesh and blood, please," Riyo says. Dr. Bell nods and makes a notation on the data pad.

"Your replacement should be ready for you in two days at the most, and after it's been attached, you'll have to go for some physical therapy. Right now, I want you to focus on your diet. You haven't eaten in days, but your body might object to solid foods, so stick with liquids for now."

"Okay."

"The pain meds we have you on should be enough, but the damage done to your body is extensive. If you're feeling enough pain that it keeps your from moving around, then let a nurse know."

"I will. Thank you, Doctor."

"Happy to help." Dr. Bell smiles down at her, then falters. "I must com your emergency contact, but…Captain Magnus Sterno is deceased."

Riyo freezes and Dr. Bell waits patiently.

"My Senate aide, Vigoram Yacha. They'll…uh…you can com them. And my cousin, Kaito Chuchi."

"Okay." Dr. Bell makes another note on the data pad. "I'm glad you're still with us, Senator."

They're interrupted by another knock at the doorframe, and an orderly sticks his head in. "Doctor, there's a Miss Abadeer here to see you."

"Aw brains, I'm late." Dr. Bell looks apologetically at Riyo. "I must go. Get well soon, Senator Chuchi. And I'm sorry for your loss."

Riyo nods, and the doctor and orderly leave. She stares up at the smooth ceiling for a few minutes, just thinking, then eases herself out of bed. The only belonging that the hospital saved was her silka bead bracelet. Riyo clips it around her wrist alongside her flimsi hospital band, then rolls the IV bag rack to her right side so that she can bring it with her while she walks around. Riyo pauses and realizes that she doesn't want to stand up. She's only sitting here and she's already exhausted.

"So it's true, you're awake." Asajj appears in the doorway, dark and imposing.

"Still here?" Riyo asks. "I thought you'd have taken Ahsoka's credits and been gone by now."

"She's not paying me anything this time around. I came to have fun."

"This was your idea of fun?"

"Sure. People got killed."

"Right. Former assassin." Riyo falls silent, and Asajj tilts her head.

"What happened, Chuchi? You had more fight in you while you were dying."

"Magnus is dead."

"Your bodyguard?"

"He was the closest thing I had to a father," Riyo says, almost challengingly. Instead of the expected jab, however, Asajj's face almost seems to soften.

"My condolences. It's never easy to lose someone like that."

Riyo stares. Asajj quirks an eyebrow up and sits down in the visitor's chair. "How did he die?"

"He died protecting me from Barriss Offee."

"Alas, you can't take revenge on her, they say she's dead. Revenge is how I dealt with my loss. It's unfortunate that the option isn't open to you."

"Revenge," Riyo echoes, slowly.

"Yes. Bloody, glorious revenge."

"I think I'll stick to attending his funeral, thanks," Riyo says. Asajj shrugs.

"Suit yourself."

Riyo's stomach chooses that moment to gurgle. Loudly. Asajj smirks.

"Hungry?"

"I've probably lost half my weight in that cell. Hmm." Riyo groans as she stands up and leans against the IV bag rack for support. "Where's the food court?"

* * *

Ahsoka's been submerged in a Bacta Tank. A breathing mask is fitted over her nose and mouth, and a couple tubes, snaking in under the hem of her hospital scrub shirt, are stuck into the right side of her lower abdomen. These tubes lead out of the tank and into a blood dialysis machine, which gives off a soft hum as it works.

Appetite forgotten, Riyo places her cup of soup on a nearby bench before coming closer to the tank. Asajj hangs back to watch.

"What happened to her?" Riyo asks, her voice shaking.

"The Emperor stabbed her," Asajj says, not bothering to be gentle. "She's regrowing a kidney, half of her pancreas, some intestine too. Not to mention everything that goes around it. And that's just the easy part."

Riyo bites down around a curse. "What's the hard part?"

"It doesn't mean jack poodoo if she doesn't wake up. Oh, she may be under anesthetic now, but eventually, she won't be. That's when we'll see if she'll live or not."

"And it matters to you because?"

"Because it'd be an insult if she was put down by the likes of Sidious, powerful as she is."

Riyo hears something completely different, but decides not to press it. She closes her eyes and presses her forehead against the cold glass of the tank. She's not going to cry.

"By the Force!" Obi-Wan and Anakin stand just inside the doorway, their eyes on the Bacta tank. While Obi-Wan stares in horror, Anakin seems to almost look resentful. Asajj sits on the bench next to Riyo's soup, her arms crossed over her chest.

"Hello, Master Jedi," Riyo says. She turns to face them, but doesn't step away from the tank.

"Senator Chuchi." Obi-Wan spares her a glance. His beard and hair have been combed and the bruises on his face have already faded to a light green. "It's good to see you're alright. How are you?"

"I've been better," Riyo says. "And you?"

"I've just been discharged, actually," Obi-Wan says. "Minor concussion and a few bruised ribs. As long as I don't do anything strenuous these next few days, I should be back to full form soon."

Obi-Wan goes to stand next to Riyo before the tank, and Anakin takes the spot on her other side. Between the two of them, Riyo seems smaller than she really is, and she's reminded of their mission to Orto Plutonia all those years ago. The three of them watch the streams of air bubbles that come out of Ahsoka's breathing mask.

"Will she make it?" Obi-Wan asks. Behind them, Asajj gives a long suffering sigh.

"Of course she'll make it. We went to hell and it spat us back out. Compared to that, this is nothing."

The men share a knowing look over Riyo's head, but they don't comment.

"It's good you're awake, Senator," Obi-Wan says in a low voice. "Padmé is on her way back with her retinue and the rest of the reformed Jedi Council. She intends to re-establish the Republic with Bail Organa and Mon Mothma and they'll need all the help they can get. Can they count on your support?"

"I will do what I can from within this hospital, Master Kenobi," Riyo says. "I won't leave Ahsoka like this."

"Neither will I," Anakin says. "I won't be here all the time, because Padmé will need help with the kids, but I'd like to be here for Ahsoka as much as possible."

"Plural? Congratulations, Anakin," Riyo says.

"Thank you," Anakin says. "Congrats on your engagement."

His tone is lackluster, and Riyo spares him a glance. Even Obi-Wan looks askance at him. Riyo thinks about correcting him, as she and Ahsoka aren't really engaged, but that wouldn't address the issue that just came up.

"You don't approve," Riyo says.

"Don't you think you're rushing into things?"

"I don't plan on getting married for a long time yet."

But Anakin shifts his weight from one foot to the other. Riyo doesn't know him well enough to correctly interpret that, but Obi-Wan does, and he says, "you may not be a part of the Order now, Anakin, but that does not give you leave to jealously guard your former padawan."

"Is that was this is about?" Riyo asks. "You think I'm going to take Ahsoka away from you?"

"No," Anakin says, convincing absolutely no one.

"I wouldn't do that," Riyo says. "Ahsoka should never have to make that choice."

"There, you see? Nothing to worry about." Obi-Wan's beard twitches as he smiles. He leans down to Riyo and continues in a stage whisper. "He has a flair for the dramatic, you'll soon learn."

"I do not!" Anakin crosses his arms and leans away as if betrayed.

Obi-Wan straightens up. "Whatever you say. Ahsoka is in good hands; I see I will be of no use to anyone here. Anakin, we must go meet the others at the launch pads. Padmé will want to see you."

"I'll catch up with you later, Obi-Wan," Anakin says. "I'd like to stay a little longer."

Obi-Wan nods and leaves, his Jedi robes billowing behind him. Asajj goes with him and asks about Sidious's remains.

Riyo returns to watching Ahsoka in the tank. Her facial marks have changed a little, lengthening along her cheekbones and swooping down around her eyes. Riyo wonders if that's normal for Togruta. Do marks suddenly appear? Can they disappear?

Anakin gives off a long-suffering sigh and Riyo gives him an incredulous look.

"What's wrong, Anakin?"

"This all is my fault."

"I see no point in placing blame anywhere than at the feet of the Emperor."

"You were quick to blame me for Malachor."

"I lashed out at you and that was unfair of me. I'm not about to repeat the same mistake."

"You should."

"Ahsoka would not begrudge you for her condition," Riyo says. Anakin scoffs, and she tuns to face him. "Look at me, Master Jedi. I have been arrested and literally tortured extensively just for being Ahsoka's friend, let alone for being her significant other. By your logic, if you can blame yourself for Ahsoka's injuries, then I can blame her for mine."

Anakin scowls. "She didn't have anything to do with that."

"I'm glad we agree," Riyo says. "So you'll stop blaming yourself for Ahsoka then?"

Anakin blinks down at her, then returns to looking at Ahsoka, muttering something about kriffing litigators and their fancy words and Padmé being a terrible influence. The corners of his mouth are turned up in a bitter smile, however, and Riyo considers that a minor victory.

Anakin clears his throat. "I'll be pretty busy helping Padmé with the twins. I'd like to be here all the time, but that's not feasible."

Riyo says nothing.

"These are hers." Anakin reaches into his robes and brings out Ahsoka's lightsabers. He lowers them reverently into Riyo's hands. "Take good care of them," he says, and they both know that he isn't talking about just the lightsabers.

"I will," Riyo says. She holds them to her heart.

* * *

The next day, after a much-needed shower, Riyo is visited by Dr. Bell. The Doctor is dressed in surgical scrubs today, complete with a skullcap, and as she and a couple nurses wheel her into a surgery room, she explains the procedure.

"We'll use your left hand as reference in determining the length of your missing finger. The bone will be affixed first, then the nerves and the vascular system, then the muscles and tendons last."

"Sounds complicated," Riyo says. The nurses hook her up to a bunch of monitoring systems and an anesthesiologist walks in, bobbing his head to music that's playing through a pair of headphones.

"Hands are delicate things, full of small parts," Dr. Bell says. "But I and my team are prepared to move quickly. It won't last more than a couple hours. You'll be awake the entire time."

"What?"

The anesthesiologist sticks two IV needles in Riyo's arm, blocking off feeling in her wrist and hand. He also puts something in her system that slows her heart rate and mind. Riyo's still awake, but she feels like she's at the bottom of a swimming pool. His work done, the anesthesiologist sits down at a nearby desk that monitors Riyo's vitals and blasts the room with music.

"Dr. Mizuno, please. I'm trying to work," Dr. Bell says, decked out in full surgical gear. She moves Riyo's hand up onto a table and inspects the small device clamped around the stub of her finger.

"Yes, Doctor. I'll play Miss Abadeer's EP." The anesthesiologist taps on the holoscreen to play heavy rock music.

"Ready?" Dr. Bell asks the nurses. After getting a nod from the both of them, she presses a button and pulls the device off with a wet pop.

Two hours later, Riyo walks into Ahsoka's room, her hand dunked in a bucket of ice. Asajj takes one look at her and cracks up.

"Don't laugh," Riyo says, although she's still got enough anesthetic left in her system that she doesn't seem to care. "It's to keep it from swelling."

"It's not that, it's how doped you look."

"You wish you were this doped," Riyo says.

"Morphine isn't my thing. Dulls the senses too much," Asajj says. "Well, let's see it."

Riyo pulls her hand from the bucket. There's a deep purple seam around her finger where the replacement's been joined to her hand. Liquid bandage seals it in.

"Not a cybernetic sort of gal?" Asajj asks.

Riyo looks askance at her. "Just for a finger?"

Asajj grins and waggles her eyebrows. "Lots of uses for a cybernetic finger."

"Ugh, don't be crass."

Asajj laughs. "Your loss." She gestures to Ashoka's tank, or…to the lack of a tank. It's been replaced by a Bacta tub, and while Ahsoka's been dunked in, her head's been brought up above the surface of the Bacta so that she can breathe. The blood filtering machine is gone, and a tarp has been placed over most of the tub to protect the Bacta.

Riyo softly grunts as she lifts her left arm out of her sling. She gently lays her hand over Ahsoka's warm forehead and swipes a thumb down one eyebrow marking. Ahsoka doesn't stir, and Riyo swallows a developing lump in her throat.

"Her internal organs have regrown," Riyo says. She traces a facial marking up to Ahsoka's montrals, and her hand rests in the valley between her horns.

"Yes."

"So now we play the waiting game."

"We won't be waiting long," Asajj says. "Jedi are like cockroaches, I know because I've tried killing them. Sturdy kriffing bunch."

Riyo leans down to kiss Ahsoka on the forehead. "Wake up soon, Ahsoka," she whispers against her skin. "I still need you here with me."

She straightens back up and winces as she puts her arm back in her sling.

"Did you know that the doctor said I can move on to solid foods?"

"Solid food, huh? My, what a big girl you are," Asajj says.

Riyo snorts. "The IV fluids make everything taste funny, but that's not the worst part."

"What's the worst part?" Asajj asks. Riyo turns around and puts her useless hands on display.

"This. This is the worst part."

Asajj cackles. "I'm not feeding you, Chuchi, but I'll record your humiliation for the Holonet."

* * *

R7 arrives at the hospital late that night, or more accurately, early the next morning. He sneaks into the hospital through the droid entrance and tells the staff that he's a Bacta Tank maintenance droid. They believe him. R7 finds Riyo and Asajj in Ahsoka's room, discussing hypothetical situations.

"'Are they escaped prisoners.' Really?" Asajj asks in astonishment. "All this from a simple question: the pregnant woman or the group of people, who would you choose to kill?"

Riyo shrugs. Her bucket, long since thawed, is set against the wall, and while she can't move her replaced finger very well, she's still articulate enough to peel the soft dimpled rind from goldfruit. Riyo offers half to Asajj, who crinkles her nose and sticks with her bottle of beer.

"They obviously didn't get into the cave the same way they're trying to get out, so I must assume it's a one way trip," Riyo says. "Thus, I must also assume that the cave also leads to another place. Since no one wants to go back the way they came, it must mean that they're fleeing from some wretched place that they'd rather die than return to. Are they prisoners escaping jail?"

"Would that make it easier to condemn them? Come on, play the game. Pick a side to kill so that I can gut your noble intentions."

"Yes, you'd like that, wouldn't you?" Riyo flatly asks. R7 rolls into the room, chattering. The two women stare at him with their mouths open.

"You'd make a good Sith Lord," Asajj finally says. "My ship?"

R7 beeps some more and Asajj nods, satisfied. She stands up and places her helmet back on her head.

"Goodbye, Asajj," Riyo says.

"Goodbye, Riyo," Asajj says. "Give my regards to Ahsoka when she wakes up."

'When,' not 'if,' even though 'if' is still a very real possibility. For a moment, Riyo stares at the open doorway where she last saw Asajj and begrudges her for her confidence. She gathers the pieces of goldfruit rind in a napkin and tosses it in the trash can.

R7 rolls to a stop in front of Ahsoka's tub and gives a mournful whistle.

"She'll be alright, R7," Riyo says. R7's domed head wheels around so that his camera can see her.

But what if she's not?

Riyo finds it very hard to sleep that night. She's still awake in bed when visiting hours roll around again.

"Senator Chuchi?" Vigo pokes their head into the room. There's a duffle bag slung over their shoulder.

Riyo sits up, desperate for a distraction. "Vigo, come in."

"You're alive!" Vigo rushes in and envelops Riyo in a hug. "When Senator Organa told us what happened, he told us not to come for you. No matter what."

"Vigo," Riyo begins, but Vigo continues.

"We wanted to come, but we didn't know how deep you were. We all thought…we thought."

Riyo pats them on the back. "I'm alright now."

"Um, yeah. Sorry." Vigo pulls away and takes the duffle bag off. They lay it at the foot of the bed and zip it open. "I brought everything on your list. Your apartment's been closed off due to an investigation, but the police finally released it yesterday. Your assets have been returned to you too."

"Thank you, Vigo." Those things honestly slipped Riyo mind, as she's been preoccupied with keeping vigil at Ahsoka's side.

Vigo holds out a holocomlink to Riyo. "You've got some missed calls."

That's an understatement. Riyo has a ton of missed calls, but as she scrolls down the list, a few repeat entries catch her eye.

"Thank you, Vigo. I'll need you to return to the Senate to be my eyes and ears. Who has been senator in my stead?"

"Chi Eekway Papanoida."

Riyo pauses at that. "Is she running my network?"

Vigo's eyes widen. "No. Miss Papanoida wouldn't know what to do with your network if it danced for her credits."

Riyo slumps in relief. "I don't care who's been running it. Pull control back to me and get my agents ready to work."

Vigo hesitates.

"What is it?"

"Ma'am," Vigo says carefully, "the Emperor's dead."

"The Emperor was a powerful man, but he was just one man. He didn't personally carry out his many crimes, he assigned his underlings to do them." Riyo levels an even stare at Vigo, who looks down under her scrutiny. "Do you want to know what is going to happen next?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"The Emperor is barely cold in the ground, but he'll still prove to be the most annoying pest, because he's left a power vacuum that his closest friends and confidants will be fighting each other to fill. As long as one of them holds any shred of power and the delusion of ruling the Empire, they will resist any movement to bring back the Republic. If they aren't brought to heel, they'll shatter this tired galaxy apart like a broken plate."

Vigo frowns. "Then…your network…."

"I did not create my network to fight the Emperor, Vigo. I made it to dismantle his legacy."

Vigo nods. "I understand." They still look slightly confused, but not as much as they did one minute ago.

"Did the Emperor establish an administration?"

"He released a list of people. There wasn't enough time for the Senate to confirm them all."

"Then they are the targets. Watch them carefully. I want my agents ready to truss them up at a moment's notice."

"What about Miss Papanoida?"

"She'll have to do her best while I'm in here, so stick close to her. Keep an eye on Padmé and Bail. Do what they need you to do and send me reports."

"Yes, ma'am." Vigo nods and leaves. Riyo turns the holocomlink around in her hands for a minute, then calls Chairman Papanoida. His hologram bust appears, and he's a little disheveled.

"Senator Chuchi! Oh the Gods are kind."

"Chairman. It's good to see you too."

"Surviving Orto Plutonia, then saving my daughters, and now coming back from the dead? They'll hail you as a hero."

"They're free to do so, but I've seen enough adventure to last a lifetime."

"Indeed? Then I must ask if you are willing to continue to serve as Senator. My daughter was chosen by the Emperor to replace you, but she is unqualified, and wasn't elected to boot."

"You may count on me. The Republic was turned into the Empire and the Empire was left without a head just as quickly. We could all use some stability in a time like this and my fellow Senators will need all the help they can get during the transition period."

Papanoida smiles. "Very good, Senator."

The call ends, and Riyo clips the comlink to her sling. She changes out of her hospital scrubs and into a casual set of clothes that Vigo brought her, slips a couple palm-sized data pads into her pockets, then makes her way to the other end of the hospital for her physical therapy.

There are a lot of people here. Middle-aged people recovering from broken bones, people getting used to newly-installed cybernetic limbs, and even younglings relearning how to walk and move their new arms. Riyo is led through the clinic, but stops dead when she sees a familiar face.

"No way," she breathes. She pushes through the glass doors into an area reserved for people relearning how to walk. Shuffling behind a walker and wearing an extensive back brace is Titon Chom. He's sweating from exertion, and his shirt is soaked through. His dark bangs fall over his forehead.

"Nngh!" Titon grunts as he tries to lift his foot. His teeth are set and his face is scrunched up from a single-minded determination to place one foot in front of the other. A therapist walks along with him, helping to keep him upright and whispering encouragement.

"Titon?" Riyo asks as she comes closer. "Titon?"

"What? Kolohe?" Upon seeing Riyo, shame and surprise flicker over Titon's face. But then he looks closer. "Wait, no. Senator Chuchi?"

"Gods, it is you!" Riyo covers her mouth with a trembling hand and crosses the room to him.

"But you're dead!" Titon shouts. He turns his walker and wills his stubborn body to move towards her. He's actually able to take a couple steps before Riyo closes the gap, and the therapist stares slack-jawed at his progress.

"They said you were dead!"

"I thought you were dead! I saw you fall." Riyo's voice breaks and she dissolves into tears. "And I thought that was…that was going to be the last time I saw you."

Riyo can't see clearly through her tears, but she can feel Titon's hand on her shoulder.

"I thought I let you down," he says. "Broke my back in three places from that fall and I considered it my penance for letting you die. What happened to your arm?"

She tells him about her blaster bolt wounds. He asks her what else they've done to her.

"It makes no difference now, it's in the past," Riyo says, but she must not have been convincing enough, because Titon's gold eyes narrow.

"What else, Senator?"

In that moment, Riyo realizes that even though the doctors put Titon back together, something of his was lost in that fall. Even though they've put her together too, she's probably left something behind in that prison cell. What it is exactly, she doesn't know, but Titon probably sees it in her like she does him.

"It'll keep, Titon."

"Senator."

"It'll keep. What is your prognosis?"

Titon looks like he'd rather not drop the subject, but he answers her all the same. "Back's rebuilt. I just gotta teach my body who's boss again, that's all."

"How long?"

"Two years." Titon sighs. "Two years of this, but it's not guaranteed that I'll ever be at a hundred again. Walk with me?"

The therapist waits off to the side as Titon steers himself back onto his track, which is outlined on the floor in white tape. He shuffles along, step by agonizing step, with Riyo at his side.

"I've suspended my engagement with Kolohe."

"What? Why?"

"Because she doesn't need a cripple like me." The words come out bitter and twisted. "She deserves someone better."

"She said this?"

Titon's silent for a long time. "No."

"What did she say?"

"She wanted to come here to Coruscant."

Riyo steps in front of him and looks him in the eye. "She still loves you. Look at me, I'm serious. You're one of the best men I've ever known, Titon, and you should let this girl love you."

Titon bows his head and gives a little nod. Riyo steps back out of the way and they continue.

"Titon?"

"Hm?"

"A couple minutes ago, I thought you were dead, and here you are. Have you…do you know if Magnus…." Riyo trails off when she sees the look on Titon's face.

"His funeral service is scheduled for next week," he says.

"Oh." Riyo looks down at her hands, which are shaking again. "Oh."

Titon reaches out and pulls her into a one-armed hug over the walker. Riyo cries into his shirt.

"I miss him too," he says.

* * *

Physical therapy is frustrating. Riyo's hand is hooked up to a machine for an hour once a day, and when she's free, she does exercises. Clench a fist, hold, stretch out the fingers, hold. Rinse. Repeat.

It's excruciating.

Riyo syncs her exercises in time with Ahsoka's breathing. It distracts her from her pain, and since she's listening to every pull of Ahsoka's lungs anyway, she might as well do something with it.

The nurses, and even Dr. Bell, have learned to look for Riyo in Ahsoka's room. She's always in here, going so far as to fall asleep in the visitor's chair. Since there aren't any open rooms big enough to house both a full-sized bed and Ahsoka's Bacta Tub, and since the staff is tired of picking Riyo up and transferring her back to her room in the middle of the night, they've squeezed in a cot for her.

So now, it's just Riyo and the sound of Ahsoka's breathing. R7 goes out from time to time to fetch her food and she eats, if only because he threatens to use that air horn of his if she doesn't, but she doesn't taste any of it.

Sometimes she gets updates of the Senate from Vigo on her black data pad. The Senate has split into factions, just as she predicted. Padmé is back and between her, Bail, and Mon, they lead a movement to revive the Republic. Another party, however, insists that Grand Vizier Mas Amedda is the new emperor, and that they must all take direction from him. Several power-hungry senators, even military and naval generals, such as Grand Moff Tarkin, each spearhead campaigns to have themselves installed as the new emperor instead. Others have joined a boycott to keep from voting on anything until an investigation into the Jedi and the assassination of Sidious is launched and completed.

Vigo says that each Senate Meeting is a din of chaos. Thousands of voices all shouting to be heard and nothing is done. Nothing. Chi Eekway is overwhelmed. Vigo says that Riyo needs to get better soon, before Chi suffers a break down.

One evening, Riyo's startled from her exercises when an orderly begins shouting outside the door.

"Visiting hours are over, Ma'am! Please leave, I beg you."

"What about those two people down the hall?"

Riyo perks up at the muffled sound of Padmé's voice.

"They're family of the patient. They're allowed to be here after hours."

WHOOSH.

The door slides open, revealing Padmé, Anakin, and Obi-Wan, with the orderly blocking their way. Padmé passes a bundled baby to Obi-Wan so that she can imperiously stare the poor orderly down.

"Well, we're Ahsoka's family, so let us in."

The orderly sputters and Padmé's stare intensifies, as if she can get him to cry by thought alone. Anakin and Obi-Wan simply watch, content to let Padmé talk for them.

"I…okay." The orderly moves out of the way and Padmé sweeps past him with her head held high. R7 rolls out of the way and huddles in the corner, out of the orderly's sight. Riyo stands up to meet them.

"Riyo! Oh, you poor girl." Padmé, mindful of Riyo's sling, gives her in a gentle hug. "I heard what happened. I'm glad you're alright."

"Thanks, Padmé." Riyo waves hello to Obi-Wan and Anakin, who settle down with the twins on the bench in front of Ahsoka's tub. When she turns back to Padmé, she finds her staring hungrily at her sling. "Uh, Padmé?"

"How long must you wear that?" Padmé asks. Riyo quirks an eyebrow.

"At least three months. You're already scheming on how to use this, aren't you?" She gestures to her arm.

Obi-Wan makes a vague sound of disagreement. "Don't martyr the girl!"

"You lack vision, Obi-Wan!" Padmé puts her hands on Riyo's shoulders and presents her to the Jedi with relish. Obi-Wan frowns up at them, but Anakin gazes up at his wife with amusement.

"Half of the Senate still supports the late Emperor and his regime, and because of that, we haven't made much progress at all," Padmé says. "But the moment Riyo walks in, they'll have no choice but to defect to our side."

"I'll…I'll be the poster child for the Empire's crimes and victims," Riyo slowly says. "I don't know how I feel about that."

"You're not just a survivor, Riyo, you're a senator. If the Empire was willing to do that to you, then they'd be willing to do that to every single person in that chamber. All the senators would look at you and see themselves mirrored back."

Obi-Wan shakes his head. "That's low, Padmé."

"It would bring the Republic back that much faster." But Padmé waves it away. "I don't want to argue in front of the kids. Just think about it, Riyo. That's all I ask." Padmé ushers Riyo to the cot so that they can sit. When she next speaks, her voice is softer. "How is Ahsoka doing?"

"The doctors are cautiously optimistic, but she hasn't woken up yet. Padmé?"

"Yes?"

"It never goes away, does it? The worrying?"

"No, it doesn't. I've learned that the only way to mitigate it is to invite yourself along to their adventures."

Riyo stares at Padmé as if she's just admitted to habitually using death sticks.

Anakin gets to his feet and passes the baby to Padmé. "I'd like to try something. It's an old Jedi mind healing technique."

"Unnecessary, in my opinion," Obi-Wan says. "The mind's a tough thing, fights like the devil. You might only complicate things for Ahsoka."

"I'm still doing it." Anakin kneels at the side of the tub and sets his left hand over Ahsoka's forehead, then closes his eyes and slips into meditation. Obi-Wan sighs through his nose.

"You haven't met my kids, have you?" Padmé sits on the bench next to Obi-Wan and beckons Riyo over. "This is Leia. Obi-Wan has Luke."

"They're beautiful," Riyo whispers. The three of them almost bump heads as they gaze down at the twins. The twins, unaware of the crowd they command, sleep on. "Amidala, or Skywalker?"

"Amidala. Ani insisted," Padmé says. "They're Force-sensitive. Ani believes that they're already bonded to each other; they cry at the same time, sleep at the same time. They can't bear to be apart from each other for long."

"Ugh." Ahsoka gasps and gives a low groan. Anakin flinches and pulls his hand from her face, his eyes wide. Everyone else leaps to their feet and leans over the tub, watching with baited breath.

"Ahsoka?" Anakin asks. Ahsoka stirs again.

"Hmm. Anakin." Her voice is hoarse from disuse.

Anakin whoops and claps a hand over his mouth when the babies begin to fuss. Padmé smiles and even Obi-Wan beams down at Ahsoka.

"How are you, Sweetie?" Padmé asks.

"Uh." Ahsoka's eyes are still closed, but her eyebrow markings crinkle from the effort of talking. "Thirsty. M'stomach hurts." She scowls and struggles against the thick Bacta. "Riyo. Where's Riyo?"

"I'm here," Riyo says. Anakin looks at her with a pained expression, and then back at Ahsoka, then moves out of the way so that she can come closer. Riyo sweeps a hand over Ahsoka's forehead and kisses her brow.

"I'm right here."

When she pulls back, she sees Ahsoka blinking up at her through hooded eyes. Riyo doesn't think she's ever seen anyone so gorgeous before.

"You crying for me, Riyo?"

She is. Riyo wipes her face and grins so hard it hurts. "I'm sorry, I just…I love you so much."

A pleased smile slowly spreads over Ahsoka's face. "I love you too."

* * *

Note Bene: Ah yes. Ahsoka and Riyo are together again. And the funny is back! That's super important, you guys, that means I didn't just chuck the humor out when the story got serious and forgot to invite it back in when things stopped being so serious. I've had problems like that in past stories.

If you have wondered about Riyo's poem, then you should know that I went back and added it in! Go read it.

Some of you left comments expressing your interest in Barriss's redemption story. Thank you for those! they're the best motivation. You'll be happy to know that the bare bones outline for that story is done (it's gonna be a sequel. Launch Date is already way longer than I planned). I'm currently fleshing out that outline, and after I chop it up into chapter-sized pieces, I'll be ready to start on the first draft. I'll be posting progress updates for the sequel on my tumblr, "artyblogs."

Just the epilogue now, and then this behemoth is done. Thanks for reading. Please leave feedback and stay safe, friends.


	20. Epilogue: Remembrance Day

Ahsoka gazes up at the new Jedi Temple, taking in how grand it is. It's far away from the original and lacking in a spooky basement that was once a Sith Shrine. Yoda hopes that this time, the absence of such a foundation will leave the Council's vision unclouded.

Many of the Jedi who survived the Purge have decided to stay scattered across the galaxy. The masters and knights have developed their safe houses into branch Jedi Temples. Together, Yoda and these masters make up the Council of Twenty. There is some debate as to which outranks the other, the Jedi High Council, or the Council of Twenty, but in any case, they exist alongside each other.

Ahsoka is a little taller than she was a few years ago, with her montrals matured and her lekku reaching down to the top of her hips.

Katooni comes out of the temple to meet her. She's a tall, gangly thing nowadays, but just as cautious as she was in Ilum.

"Ahsoka!" Katooni smiles and gives her a brief hug. "You're here."

"So I am. How're you?"

"Good. Master Kenobi thinks I'm ready for the trials. He's even applying for a second padawan." Katooni walks with Ahsoka into the temple. A few nameless Jedi are around: knights with their padawans in tow, a couple younglings late for lessons run past them, shouting, and even a few masters have a debate off to the side.

"I'll probably be the one who ends up teaching them though. He's so busy."

"Then it'll prepare you for your own padawan," Ahsoka says. Katooni laughs.

"A padawan of my own? No way! Not when you haven't chosen your own."

"You know why I can't have a padawan," Ahsoka says. "I'm not Jedi."

"Yoda gave you a knighthood."

"An honorary knighthood, if that means anything. And even if I _was_ allowed a padawan, anyone I choose would inherit the mistrust of the Councils. I can't put that on anyone."

Katooni drags her hands down her face. "Ugh that's not fair!"

"Sometimes that's the way it has to be. It's alright, Katooni. Don't worry about it."

Katooni looks askance, but drops the subject all the same.

"How's Master Unduli?" Ahsoka asks.

"She's okay. She's getting a new padawan too. A Mirilian boy. Zatt says that he's really quiet. Come on, it's this way."

Ahsoka's visit to the temple is for a simple bronze bust. It's placed in the Archives, set apart from the Lost Twenty busts that decorate the main aisle, but was made with the same amount of care that went into the others. Ahsoka stands in front of the bust, and falls silent. Katooni keeps her distance and waits.

"Barriss," Ahsoka whispers. It's a remarkable likeness, and whoever the artist is, Ahsoka thanks them for choosing to depict Barriss in her Jedi hood, and not in her Sith clothes. Luminara has been tight-lipped about Barriss's fate. Some say that Luminara buried her in an unmarked grave. Others say that Barriss is alive, but she's held in a secret prison. There are more rumors, but they only get more absurd, and as such aren't worth repeating.

After all this time, Ahsoka still hasn't decided how she feels about her former friend. She doubts she will ever figure it out.

* * *

When Ahsoka comes home, she's greeted by R7, who bleepblops at her. Ahsoka swipes a hand over his dome, then takes off her boots.

"I'm home," she says.

Riyo smiles at her from her place on the couch. She's dressed in shorts and a tank top to keep from sweating, as the thermostat of the apartment has been set to a medium. "Welcome home. How did it go?"

Ahsoka arches up an eyebrow marking and shucks her coat. She places it on a hook on the wall. "The Council is still aloof, and I still need to be chaperoned when I visit. Same old."

Riyo wrinkles her nose. "You helped kill a Sith Lord. One would think that proves you aren't Dark."

"Yeah, or maybe they think I helped so that Anakin and I could become the new Rule of Two."

"The both of you? Sith? Ha."

"Hey, I've done bad things! I've corrupted a classically beautiful Pantoran girl, for instance."

Riyo rolls her eyes. "Corrupting Pantoran girls? Awful. Go to your room and think about what you've done."

Ahsoka laughs, deep and full, and Riyo's eyes light up at the sound of it. She pats the couch beside her in invitation, and Ahsoka comes over. Riyo barely gives her a moment to get situated before she snuggles into her side.

"You're here just in time, they haven't run the segment yet." Riyo picks up a remote and turns the volume up on the holoscreen. She has two full tattoo sleeves now, and Ahsoka's fingertips idly trace the familiar jagged design on the outside of her right forearm.

 _"Remembrance Day is this week!"_ a news anchor says. _"Where were you when the Empire fell? Where will you be to celebrate it this year? Preparations are underway all across the galaxy for the holiday. The most anticipated event is the Banking Clan's fireworks spectacular on Coruscant. Don't miss it._

 _"Now for Middle Ring news. Authorities are baffled by a string of high-profile robberies and ransomed kidnappings concerning Republic cargo ships. The perpetrators are still at large and are considered armed and highly dangerous. If anyone has any information about these two women please contact the Republic Police at this com-number."_

Riyo chuckles when Lassa and Asajj's pictures flash across the screen. "I know I shouldn't laugh, but I just know that they're never going to catch them."

 _"Senator Padmé Amidala returns from her lengthy vacation next week, and the Senate is eager to have her back. When asked about rumors of her plans to run for Chancellor, Senator Amidala had only this to say."_

Padmé appears on screen, smiling beatifically. _"I'm quite flattered that you'd ask me that, actually. I can only hope to be humble and gracious enough to run for such an important position."_

Ahsoka chuckles and Riyo scoffs. "She's fooling no one."

"She didn't answer the question either," Ahsoka says. The HoloNet News anchor turns the show over to Dyslogia Twang, a gossip reporter.

 _"Thanks, Ultana. Anakin Skywalker was seen yesterday taking his two kids out for a walk. Ladies and gents, this man still looks so good and his kids are so precious. I can't stand it."_

Another clip plays. The camera bobbles a little as the cameraman runs down a lakeside path towards Anakin, who wears casual clothes, but got recognized anyway. Luke and Leia are too big to be carried, but they hold Anakin's hands as they walk. As soon as the cameraman gets close enough, Luke lets go and hides behind Anakin. Leia stands her ground and stares up at them with her dark eyes.

 _"Yo, Mr. Skywalker. Big fan."_

 _"Huh? Oh thanks."_ Anakin's eyes shift from the camera to other people standing around him.

 _"Your wife's going back to work soon, right? What do you think about that?"_

 _"Oh yeah!"_ Anakin's eyes light up. _"Padmé's great. I'm just so proud of her and what she's done for the Republic."_

 _"How are the kids?"_

 _"They're smart, they're reading already! I can't believe it."_

BOOMPF.

Leia Force summons the boom microphone into her hands, unleashing hell. The camera shakes uncontrollably as the cameraman freaks out, and the sound guy darts into view to retrieve his equipment. Anakin crouches down.

 _"Oh Force! Leia, Sweetie, no."_

Ahsoka and Riyo practically cackle.

"Please tell me you recorded that," Ahsoka says, wiping a tear from her eye. Riyo nods and points to the base of the holoscreen, where a data card is running.

* * *

When she's gotten a hold of herself, Riyo turns the holoscreen off and sets the remote aside. She hands Ahsoka her white data pad and goes to retrieve the data card.

"We got a message from Kaito," she says. "You should take a look."

"Hmm, okay." Ahsoka taps in the passcode and scrolls through the messages.

 _Dear Riyo,  
_ _I was wondering if you had any openings in your law firm. I've got my degree now, and I'd like to work for you as an associate.  
_ _Sincerely,  
_ _Vigoram Yacha_

 _Hey Riyo,  
_ _I sent an invitation through the mail, but I wanted to message you too. I'm finally graduating from officer's school, and it'd mean a lot to me if you came.  
_ _-Titon Chom_

 _Dearest Cousins,  
_ _The venue's been booked. Now all you have to do is decide on decorations. Please reconsider increasing your budget. Flower centerpieces aren't cheap.  
_ _-Kaito_

Ahsoka lowers the data pad so that she can watch Riyo. Her fiancée's oblivious, and is too busy editing the clip and making copies onto other data cards. One will go to the Skywalkers, of course. Another two to Obi-Wan and Bail, who dote on the twins like uncles.

Riyo's still a short thing, slender with subtle curves. She pauses in the middle of editing the clip in order to gather her hair into a messy bun. In doing so, she reveals the gentle, blue curve of her neck. Wispy locks of light purple hair drift down from her bun and rest against her skin.

Ahsoka sits up, then ducks a quarter of an inch, like she's hiding in waist-deep grass. If she could see herself, she would notice her pupils widening until her irises are little more than thin, blue rings. She sets the data pad down on the couch beside her, then sneaks up behind Riyo as silent as a shadow. As soon as she's close enough, she hugs the smaller woman around the waist.

"Ack!" Riyo's shriek dissolves into giggles. "Ahsoka!"

"Why can't we just elope?" Ahsoka murmurs into her ear, entirely too pleased with herself. Riyo gives her arm a playful swat, but Ahsoka just hugs tighter and nuzzles Riyo's shoulder. "Less of a headache that way."

"No one would ever forgive us," Riyo says. "Least of all Anakin, and he's finally warmed up to me."

"Hmm, can former Jedi perform ceremonies? Maybe he can just officiate for us and we can be done with it."

Riyo laughs, and Ahsoka can't help but smile and thumb circles into her stomach through her shirt. "Even if they can't, that wouldn't stop him. Ahsoka, you're not subtle _at all_."

"Who says I'm trying to be subtle?" Ahsoka plants a kiss on the soft skin behind Riyo's ear, making her shiver. Riyo reaches down to stay Ahsoka's hands, but only ends up intertwining their fingers.

"Have anyplace to be?" Ahsoka asks against her skin.

"Not right now." Riyo frees herself and turns around, then gently pushes Ahsoka back until her calves bump into the couch.

"Oop!" Ahsoka falls onto the couch and watches as Riyo crawls up over her, straddling her hips.

"Wow, hi," Ahsoka blurts out, reeling from having Riyo so close. To ground herself, Ahsoka splays her hands over Riyo's smooth thighs and slides them up until they settle on the slight flare of her hips. Riyo bites her lip and leans down to give Ahsoka a searing kiss.

BEEP. The holocomlink on the coffee table rings. Riyo turns towards it, but Ahsoka groans.

"Leave it."

"O-okay."

BEEP. The holocomlink rings again. Ahsoka internally curses whoever's calling and prays that they hang up.

CLICK.

 _"Hello? Oh Force!"_

Cold horror washes over the both of them as they turn to look. R7 is next to the coffee table with his manipulator on the answer button of the holocomlink. Anakin's hologram quickly turns away and covers his eyes with a hand.

"R7!" Riyo leaps off of Ahsoka and swings a throw pillow at the droid, who screams and flees into the kitchen. Ahsoka, convinced that her soul is leaving her body, Force summons a blanket from the other end of the couch so she can drape it over her corpse.

 _"Should I call later?"_ Anakin asks. _"Because I can."_

"And give R7 another opportunity to humiliate us? I don't think so." Riyo straightens up and tries, and fails, to look Anakin in the eye. Her face is deep indigo. "What can we do for you?"

 _"Uhm."_

"Just spit it out."

 _"Yeah. I wanted to ask if you and Ahsoka are still coming to the twins' birthday party on Zhellday. It's gonna be here on Naboo."_

"Yes, if Ahsoka ever emerges from her shame cocoon." Riyo glances back at her.

"Ahsoka? Who's that?" Ahsoka asks through the blanket. "I don't think she exists anymore."

 _"Good,"_ Anakin says. _"Little warning though. Padmé's inviting some of her friends, so it'll be a classier party than last years. Dress nice."_

"Duly noted."

 _"Also, that one guy will be there, Lux Bonteri."_

Ahsoka groans and Riyo smiles despite herself.

 _"Hey, Lux is kind of like Padmé's nephew, okay? His mom was one of her best friends. Be nice."_

"And he's my colleague. Thank you for the warning, Anakin," Riyo says. "I must ask. Why did you tell us not to get a present for Leia?"

Anakin rubs the back of his neck. _"Yeah, I…probably should let you know. Ahsoka is Leia's birthday present this year."_

Riyo's eyes narrow. "I don't understand."

 _"Padmé and I have decided that the twins are going to start training their Force powers and that Ahsoka will be Leia's master."_

"What?" Ahsoka pulls the blanket off her head. "I'm what?"

Anakin flashes a thumbs up at them. _"Congrats, Snips! You're getting a padawan!"_

"What the kark, are you serious?" Ahsoka tosses the blanket to the side and stands up. "I thought you were gonna be the one who teaches your kids!"

 _"Well, yeah, but Padmé says that I should focus on being their father first, not their master, so you'll be Leia's formal master. You're the only one we trust with her. Will you do it?"_

Ahsoka goes into a thoughtful silence for a while. In a rare show of patience, Anakin waits for her answer.

"Okay," she finally says. "I'll teach her."

Anakin beams at her and Ahsoka grins back. _"I'll see you guys on Zhellday,"_ he says. He hangs up. Ahsoka sinks back onto the couch, lost in thought. Riyo turns off the holocomlink, then unplugs it for good measure.

"Congratulations," she says. She crosses the room to stand before Ahsoka.

Ahsoka looks up at her. "Naboo's how many hours away? We have to get ready, don't we?"

"Eventually. We have time," Riyo says. She takes Ahsoka's face in her hands and leans down to kiss her.

* * *

Note Bene: And to think that this all started with a lunch date. Writing this story has been one hell of a trip. I've learned a lot and I hope that reading this story was as rewarding for you as it was for me.

Thank you for letting me tell you a story. Thank you for the kudos, and the comments, and the reviews. For every single Subscribe and Favorite and Bookmark. Even for lurking. Every time you drop some feedback, it makes my day, and I will be forever grateful.

I've done my best to end this story in a good way, so that no-one's left hanging. I'm working on a sequel, but that'll probably take the better part of a year to write. Maybe more than that (I mean, I have a job now, so I gotta manage my time. No more 3ams for me). When it gets posted, this epilogue will definitely be retconned, so enjoy it while it's here. Thank you all again. You're all good people and I wish you the best.

Goodnight, readers. Goodnight.


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